Haywood Highsmith Provides Injury Update: What to Expect from Him This Season

Highsmith is coming off the best statistical season of his career, averaging a career-high 6.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 45.8% from the field and 38.2% from beyond the arc through 74 games and 42 starts for the Miami Heat. 

While he may not be much of an offensive threat, Highsmith is a rangy, athletic defender who gives players problems on the wing.

According to NBA insider Sam Vecenie, Highsmith is expected to see a lot of playing time early in the season.

"The thing that Nets fans probably won't want to hear is that I would guess he is going to play the first three months of the year. Just because they will need somebody to take defensive assignments away from some of their younger guys," Vecenie said.

Unlike most of Brooklyn’s roster, Highsmith is battle tested. The sixth year forward was a key piece in some of Miami’s most recent playoff runs. During Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Finals against the Denver Nuggets, he totaled 18 points, two steals and two rebounds. Just a few games prior, he scored 15 points along with two steals and two rebounds during an Eastern Conference Finals matchup against the Boston Celtics.

After playing impressive defense on Celtics star Jayson Tatum earlier in the season, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra praised. Highsmith’s effort.

He played so well you couldn't take him out of the game," Spoelstra said. "Those are the kind of things you want from a head coaching standpoint: make us play you because you're playing so hard and you're making so many things happen.

By adding Highsmith, the Nets now have skilled defenders in the paint (Nic Claxton), backcourt (Terance Mann) and wing (Highsmith). If Highsmith’s rehabilitation process stays on schedule, the Nets should enter the season with a solid defensive core.