Ex-Maverick Suffers Head Injury, Leaves Pistons-Heat Game in Wheelchair

The sharpshooter left the game after multiple brutal hits to his head

Oct 16, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (8) during player introductions before their preseason game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

In the third quarter of Tuesday's game between the Miami Heat and Detroit Pistons, former Dallas Mavericks Tim Hardaway Jr. had to be helped off the court in a wheelchair following two scary hits to the head. The first one came on an elbow from Miami's Bam Adebayo, then Hardaway got up and tried to take a charge from Tyler Herro and slammed the back of his head against the court.

The wheelchair comes out for Tim Hardaway Jr., who took two hard hits to the head on the same possession. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/hcbqeoEbML

— HEAT on FanDuel Sports Network (@FanDuelSN_Heat) November 13, 2024

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According to Senior NBA reporter Chris Haynes, Hardaway was taken to the hospital and underwent a CAT scan, getting back negative results, which is a good sign considering the hits he took. He had stitches from getting elbowed by Adebayo, but the early returns have been promising.

The Mavericks traded Hardaway Jr. and three future second-round picks to the Pistons in exchange for Quentin Grimes, which opened up the cap room necessary to sign Naji Marshall with a mid-level exception and gave them a trade exception, which they used to bring in Klay Thompson.

Hardaway has started all 12 games this season, averaging 12.5 PPG and shooting 45.7% from three. He has never shot over 40% from three in his career, so it'd be surprising to see him keep that number up all season. In six seasons with the Mavericks, he mainly came off the bench but had a season of 16.6 PPG while shooting 39.1% from three.

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