Heat suspend Waiters 10 games for conduct detrimental to team

The Miami Heat suspended guard Dion Waiters 10 games without pay for conduct detrimental to the team, the team announced Sunday.

The suspension officially began with the Heat's Nov. 8 contest against the Los Angeles Lakers and will end following the team's Nov. 29 home game against the Golden State Warriors.

"We are very disappointed in Dion's actions this season that include the very scary situation on Thursday night, and grateful that the outcome wasn't worse," the team said in a statement.

Waiters reportedly ingested a THC-infused edible on the team plane, resulting in a medical emergency. Fox Sports 640's Andy Slater initially reported the 27-year-old overdosed and had a seizure, while sources told ESPN's Brian Windhorst and Adrian Wojnarowski that Waiters had suffered a panic attack.

THC is a chemical compound responsible for the intoxicating effects of cannabis.

The Heat believe another player gave Waiters the triggering "gummy," but Waiters elected not to divulge who gave it to him, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.

This is Waiters' second team-issued suspension of the season. He was previously banned for the Heat's season opener due to his conduct during the preseason. Despite the conclusion of that initial suspension, he has still not appeared in a game this season.

Waiters' latest ban guarantees he won't meet the criteria for a substantial bonus. Had Waiters appeared in 70 games in 2019-20, he would have received an additional $1.2 million on top of his $12.1-million base salary. Even if he appears in every game upon the conclusion of his current suspension, he can only play a maximum of 64 games.

Waiters is in Year 3 of a four-year, $52-million contract. Through his first three seasons with the Heat, he's averaged 14 points and 3.6 assists in just under 29 minutes per game. But injuries have limited the braggadocios shooting guard to only 120 games total, an average of 40 per season.

With Waiters in poor standing and Jimmy Butler on paternity leave to start the season, the Heat turned a pair of rookie stopgaps on the wings. The results couldn't have been much better for Miami. Tyler Herro, the No. 13 pick in the 2019 draft, has averaged 13.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. Undrafted Kendrick Nunn, who played in the G League last season, has averaged 16.6 points and 4.8 assists, starting at shooting guard for each of the Heat's nine games to date.

With Butler back and the rookie duo maintaining its strong play, the Heat have jumped out to a 6-3 start to sit third in the Eastern Conference.