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Dwyane Wade slowed by injuries

LOS ANGELES – Dwyane Wade rose for a dunk, Eric Bledsoe jumped with him and, for a moment, the Los Angeles Clippers guard looked likely to become the latest in a long line of Wade's victims. But a funny thing happened on Bledsoe's way to infamy: He matched Wade's ascent and snuffed out Wade's slam attempt, tossing back the ball with his right hand.

Wade eventually jogged down the floor on his surgically repaired left knee and sore left foot. His right thumb is also jammed, adding to the litany of injuries slowing the Miami Heat's All-Star guard.

Wade scored a season-low six points in the Heat's 107-100 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night. Clearly limited by the injuries, there's a chance he could sit out Thursday night's game against the Denver Nuggets.

"When you get one thing it ends up being about three different things," Wade said. "You weather it. It will be all right."

Wade, 30, missed 17 of 66 games last season. His left knee needed to be drained during the playoffs and eventually required surgery, forcing him to skip the Olympics. Nine games into this season, he is still slowed, averaging 16.9 points – his fewest since his rookie season – and making just 16.7 percent of his 3-point attempts. He has scored less than 10 points in two of the past three games.

"As he's recovering from the surgery in the offseason, he sprained his ankle, twisted his foot and jammed his finger," LeBron James said. "He's going to try to get healthy. I know it's affecting his play on the floor and I know he wants to play at the highest level. As his knee is getting better, he's banging other things. He will be smart about it. He'll be back."

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Wade sprained his left foot when he landed on teammate Chris Bosh's foot in Houston on Monday. Wade returned after the injury, but was clearly limited.

Wade had X-rays on the foot, and after testing it in a workout prior to the Clippers game, he opted to play. He missed all but two of his 10 shots and had nearly as many turnovers (five) as assists (six).

"Is he 100 percent?" Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. "No. But he will never tell you that. Hopefully, he will be able to get healthier."

Wade said his foot was still sore after the Clippers game, but didn't think it was serious.

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"I just tried to give it a go and do what I could out there for my team," Wade said.

If Wade does have to miss some time, Ray Allen could start for him. Allen is averaging 12.8 points while shooting 54.1 percent from 3-point range while coming off the bench in all nine games.

Wade was asked if there was reason to be overly concerned. He looked his questioner in the eyes and answered with one word: "No."

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