Sun-Sentinal <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Small forward James Posey, a cornerstone of the Heat's revamped roster, likely will be sidelined for the start of the season. Injured late in Saturday's exhibition loss to Detroit when his right thumb snapped backward, Posey will wear a removable cast for two weeks. X-rays were taken Saturday night at the Palace of Auburn Hills, as was an MRI conducted Sunday after Posey returned to South Florida with trainer Ron Culp. Posey is being listed with a sprain. The removable cast will allow the seventh-year forward to practice but keep him from games. The Heat opens Nov. 2 in Memphis. Posey was dealt by the Grizzlies to the Heat in August with point guard Jason Williams for forward Eddie Jones as part of a larger trade. Posey, who said he is uncertain how he was injured, has started all five exhibition games, often drawing the hardest defensive perimeter assignment. Among the Heat's options is playing power forwards Antoine Walker and Udonis Haslem in tandem, an alignment coach Stan Van Gundy had committed to experimenting with in the final three exhibitions. Should the Heat take a more conservative approach, Posey could be replaced by reserve small forward Shandon Anderson or Jason Kapono. Posey has struggled in the preseason, with Van Gundy working to get him on the move in the offense with a series of lane cuts. Among the reasons Posey had become entrenched in the lineup is his ability to convert spot-up 3-point shots. Without Posey's 3-point presence a bad situation could grow worse. After finishing third in the league in 3-point percentage, at .377, last season, the Heat is shooting just .246 from beyond the arc, including 0 of 11 Saturday against the Pistons. To put that in perspective, no NBA team shot worse than .312 on 3-pointers last season and the Heat's all-time single-season low was .293 in 1989-90, the franchise's second season. "We've obviously got to find some ways to get some shots in the basket," said Van Gundy, who gave his team Sunday off in preparation for tonight's exhibition against the Hawks. "We've got to find a way to get some of our shooters shots, and they've got to knock `em in."</div> Source
Damn this isn't good. Posey injured is no good to us. IF Posey can stay healthy though he will beo ne of the teams most valuable pieces. Posey is going to be an underrated player for this team.
