Miami Heat’s Derrick Jones stretchered off in NBA loss to Indiana Pacers

Miami forward Derrick Jones Jr. was stretchered off in a
neck brace after a scary collision in the Heat’s 109-92 loss to Indiana on
Friday — a preview of their upcoming NBA playoff matchup.

With top players from both teams sitting out in anticipation
of the first-round playoff series next week in the NBA’s quarantine bubble at
Orlando, Doug McDermott led the Pacers with 23 points and point guard Malcom
Brogdon added 16. Rookies Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro scored 23 and 16 points
respectively for the Heat, who saw reserve forward Jones — winner of All-Star
weekend’s slam dunk contest in February — hit the court hard after crashing
into Indiana’s 2.11m, 113kg Georgian center Goga Bitadze as he tried to round a
screen.

Jones was on the floor for several minutes before he was
placed on a stretcher with a neck brace. Miami coach Erick Spoelstra said Jones
would undergo further tests to determine the extent of shoulder and neck
injuries, but in a positive sign was not reporting numbness in his extremities.

Also read: NBA players take a knee as league restarts in Florida ‘bubble’

With the win on the final day of the NBA’s regular season,
Indiana snatched the fourth seed in the East from the Heat.

The two teams were already locked into a first-round
encounter as the fourth and fifth seeds, and home court advantage for the
higher seed carries little importance since the series will be played on the
campus at Disney World with no fans in attendance as the league seeks to crown
a champion after a coronavirus hiatus of more than four months.

Reigning champions Toronto, the second seeds in the East,
closed out the regular season with a 117-109 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

Also read: Los Angeles Lakers maintain top spot in NBA despite loss against Oklahoma City Thunders

Norman Powell led the Raptors with 15 points and Spanish big
man Marc Gasol added two points for Toronto, who also opted to rest stars Kyle
Lowry, Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet.

Serge Ibaka and OG Anunoby also missed the game, with
Raptors coach Nick Nurse saying both were still battling knee injuries.

Nuggets stars Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray played just 10
minutes apiece, Jokic scoring two points and Murray 11 with reserve point guard
Monte Morris scoring 16.