Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh went through some on-court drills, increasing the likelihood that the All-Star could make a return sooner than expected.
According to ESPN, Bosh, who has been out with an abdominal strain, went through the workout under the supervision of Keith Askins on the main court of the American Airlines Arena. The sessions were also attended by team president Pat Riley.
Bosh went through drills that included catching the ball and turning with it. He also worked on some lateral movement and shot some free throws.
The Heat have said Bosh is out indefinitely, but this development could bode well for Miami, who have desperately missed the power forward's inside presence.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said he was going to plan for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics without Bosh. "I'm not even preparing for that right now," Spoelstra told reporters. "I'm preparing for what we have in the gym. So our focus is Monday (Game 1) and that's all I can concentrate on."
"We have enough to win (Monday) and that's all any of our guys should be focused on.
Wade said there will be no excuses even if Bosh is missing. "Me and LeBron we are the key to our team," Wade said. "Both of us have to play well; that doesn't mean we have to score 40 and 30. But we have to play well to give ourselves a legitimate chance of beating this team. Chris was a big part of what we did last year when we beat them in five games (in the conference semi-finals), so we have to figure out a way to make up for his absence.
"We don't have Chris Bosh. We have no excuses."