Miami Heat's Udonis Haslem Proves He's Still Valuable In These Situations

Because of injuries, Haslem made his first start since 2015-16 season Thursday against Houston Rockets

Miami Heat team captain Udonis Haslem is at a point where his stats mean little. 

Haslem made his first start Thursday in five seasons against the Houston Rockets. He stat line: two points on 0 of 4 shooting in 11 minutes. 

It wasn't much but he provided much more in helping the Heat pick up their third straight win. 

"UD just gave us that tenacity and toughness," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Just from the very get go everybody understood how important this game was for us and I think had a large part in that just with his intensity that was almost spilling over the edge. but it's inspiring when you're witnessing it."

Haslem was in the lineup because of injuries to Bam Adebayo, Kyle Lowry, Gabe Vincent and Dewayne Dedmon.  

Haslem tried to make the night even more nostalgic when he attempted a jumper early in the game after receiving a pass from Tyler Herro.

"It was incredible. I thought it was going in," Herro said, laughing. "Actually, the play wasn't even for him. He just broke it off and shot it."

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Shandel Richardson covers the Miami Heat for Inside The Heat.

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