Report: Terry Rozier cleared for 5-on-5, expected to be ready for training camp

Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier has been fully cleared to play 5-on-5 and is expected to be ready to participate in training camp, which begins next week in the Bahamas, Heat insider Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald was first to report Tuesday.

NEW: Terry Rozier cleared for 5-on-5, looking forward to first Heat camp: “It’s a fresh start” https://t.co/lSsH2wqzF5

— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) September 24, 2024

Terry Rozier had officially been cleared for 5-on-5, per @Anthony_Chiang:

“I’m still the same old Terry when I play. … It’s a fresh start. You get to be around the guys for a fill season, learn the plays and really just get that camaraderie with the other guys.” pic.twitter.com/NEh1dMYZud

— Hot Hot Hoops (@hothothoops) September 24, 2024

Rozier missed the team’s final 11 games–four regular season, two play-in and five postseason–with a serious neck injury that eventually put him in a neck brace. He spent five months recovering, describing the process as “super tough.”

“This is the first summer where I had to rehab from the beginning and take steps and put it in somebody else’s hands and trust them with it,” Rozier said, according to Chiang. “But this has probably been one of my best summers. It’s been great for me. The Heat organization has been doing a great job every day to where we are at right now.”

Rozier averaged 16.4 points on 42.3 percent shooting and 37.1 percent from deep on 5.7 triple tries per game after being traded to the Heat from Charlotte. He also averaged 4.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists in 31.5 minutes.

The 30-year-old will be entering his 10th NBA season with his third different organization. Upon arrival, Rozier looked like the franchise’s best scoring point guard since the likes of Goran Dragic, averaging 19.8 points on 45.4/42.9/89.7 shooting splits over a 15-game stretch pre-injury.

“I know the fans are eager to see what it’s going to be like this year,” he added. “It sucks the way it ended last year for me. Not being able to play in the playoffs, I think that was one of the main reasons I came here — to help this organization.

“But it’s a fresh start. You get to be around the guys for a full season, be around the coaches for a full season, learn the plays and really just get that camaraderie with the other guys. So it’s going to be super helpful. I think we just let last year go, and just focus on this year and move on.

“I’ve been blessed with a really great body and I’ve been able to recover. So I’m going to go back to the drawing board and do this [thing] again.”

Rozier is in the second year of a four-year, $96.3 million deal he signed with Charlotte ahead of the 2021-22 season. His cap hit for this upcoming season is worth $24.9 million–17.7 percent of the cap–with a partially guaranteed $26.6 million cap hit (17.2 percent) next season. Currently, $24.9 million of it is guaranteed, but it automatically becomes fully guaranteed if the team makes the second round of the playoffs and he plays in at least 70 games.

He is expected to compete for one of Miami’s three open spots in the starting 5. Rozier hasn’t been a full-time bench player since his last season with the Boston Celtics in 2018-19, when he started just 14 of his 79 games. He came off the bench in his first-ever game with Miami, but started the other 30.

Assuming he’s healthy, there’s reason to be genuinely excited for Rozier’s arrival, given his scoring prowess, improved playmaking and already-apparent chemistry with Bam Adebayo. How do you think Rozier’s season ultimately pans out? Let us know in the comments!

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This is a developing news story. Stay tuned for updates.

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