Heat rookie Nikola Jovic will be out for the next four weeks with a lower back injury, the team announced Tuesday.
At 19, Jovic had been dealing with ongoing lower back spasms for the past few weeks.
Jovic has been out of the Miami squad’s rotation and most of his playing time has come when the team has been crippled by injuries.
He is averaging 5.5 points on 40.6 percent shooting from the field (22.9 percent on 3-pointers) with 2.1 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game in 15 appearances (eight starts) in his career. first season in the NBA.
He also spent time in the G League with the Heat’s development affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
He was selected by Miami with the 27th pick in the draft last summer.
Jovic and Omer Yurtseven (left ankle surgery) are the only two players ruled out for Wednesday’s game against the Lakers in Los Angeles.
Dewayne Dedmon (left foot plantar fasciitis), Udonis Haslem (right Achilles tendonitis) and Duncan Robinson (left hamstring strain) are listed as questionable.