Hardaway Expected Back as Heat Starter

The Miami Heat’s eight-day layoff has given Tim Hardaway’s sprained foot time to heal and he’s expected to start today in Game 1 of the second-round series against New York.

“I told him I’d sleep on it, and he rolled his eyes on me,” Coach Pat Riley said Saturday. “I would probably think he would [start], unless there’s any kind of a change.”

Hardaway sprained his left foot April 10 and has played only eight minutes since. The point guard missed Miami’s first-round sweep of Detroit because of the injury.

Hardaway said he hopes to play 30 to 40 minutes today.

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Based on past experience, the Heat players know to expect plenty of vocal New York fans in their arena. Asked if that bothers him, P.J. Brown said, “Not really, because I had a little bit of that in New Jersey. It was probably 80% of the arena cheering for the Knicks. I’m not surprised.”

Riley said he has discussed the problem with Miami owner Micky Arison. “We’ve invested a lot of money in transplanting some Heat people up in New York,” Riley said, cracking a smile. “We might have some at Madison Square Garden.”

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Here they go again: the ancient Utah Jazz against the young Portland Trail Blazers.

Utah’s starting five, led by Karl Malone, John Stockton and Jeff Hornacek, averages nearly 35 years and five months.

“I’ve never counted them out,” Portland Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “John and Karl and Jeff have been around for so long, everybody starts to talk about when Father Time is going to make its impact. I know it’s chipping at them, but they do such a great job of staying ready every year and preparing themselves mentally that they always get better.”

Fighting off Seattle came with a price, though. While the Trail Blazers have had four days off since eliminating Minnesota, the Jazz had only about 40 hours to recover from Friday night’s victory.

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Olden Polynice feels vindicated, and with good reason. Labeled a disruptive force and even a “cancer” in recent years, things could only get better at some point.

That’s where Polynice is now.

While his former teams have been eliminated from the playoffs, Polynice will start at center for Utah against Portland.

When Polynice signed as a free agent in August, it raised eyebrows around the league. How could an outspoken, free-spirited journeyman fit into the structured regime of Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan?

No problem, it turns out.

“When we first met, Jerry had me sit down,” said Polynice, who came to Utah after a year in Seattle and four strenuous years in Sacramento. “He laid out all the rules, from the drawstring on down.”

Said Sloan: “That reputation went out the window when he got here. “He had to go on what our team is trying to do. We’ve got great players that show great leadership. I think everything worked out well.”