Heat on the clock with Udonis Haslem, who has yet to clock in on the court

Even after the playing time was limited to scant appearances, Udonis Haslem never waited this long.

Last season, when the Miami Heat captain played only 44 minutes over four appearances, there was game action in November.

In 2018-19, when he played 74 minutes, he was on the clock by October.

And in 2017-18, a season that left him with just 72 minutes of playing time, the first call to action came in mid-November.

But as the Heat prepare for Friday night’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at AmericanAirlines Arena, their penultimate home game of the season, Haslem stands statistically absent from 2020-21, yet to appear in a game ... now with only six games remaining in the regular season.

According to the NBA, Haslem will earn credit in the league’s salary and pension accounting as an active NBA player for this season even without an appearance, because he is under contract. However, statistically, according to the league this would not count as an 18th season until he steps on the court during a regular-season, play-in or playoff game.

The NBA’s all-time leader for seasons played is Vince Carter, retiring last year after his 22nd season. Playing 21 seasons were Robert Parish, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Garnett and Kevin Willis. And those with 20 seasons in the game include Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Jamal Crawford. Former Heat forward Juwan Howard played 19 seasons.

Haslem said his faith remains that there will be court time, even as coach Erik Spoelstra bypassed such an opportunity Tuesday night when clearing his bench in the 127-113 loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

“I mean, I haven’t thought about it,” said Haslem, who turns 41 on June 9 and is the oldest active player in the league. “But I’m sure Spo and our guys keep those things close to hand and understand the importance of that.”

The game against the Timberwolves is one of two remaining regular-season home games, with the other against the Philadelphia 76ers on May 13, a game that could have critical playoff implications for both teams, with the Heat looking to finish at least No. 6 and avoid the two-and-out play-in tournament, and the 76ers vying for the top seed in the East.

Another option is the May 16 regular-season finale on the road against the Detroit Pistons, by when the Heat’s seeding fate might be sealed.

“But for me,” Haslem said, “if we don’t win the Detroit and I got in, it really wouldn’t matter. My thing is, let’s win out this season, let’s get this best playoff spot we can possibly get, and let’s go in here and try to get it done.”

He paused, then laughed.

“But I’m sure Spo will figure out a way to get me in there for five seconds,” he said, “and I’ll grab 10 rebounds.”

With the Heat last year locked into a first-round series against the Indiana Pacers going into their regular-season finale, Haslem started that game at the quarantine bubble setting at Disney World, played 24 minutes, and closed with seven points and eight rebounds.

The season before, on the night Dwyane Wade ended his career, Haslem also made his lone start in the season finale, finishing that road game against the Brooklyn Nets with 12 points and 11 rebounds, including the basket that capped Wade’s career-ending triple-double.

The Heat lost both of the season finales. This season, it is possible the Heat’s final regular-season game could dramatically impact their playoff seed.

Nonetheless, even as the schedule winds down, Spoelstra said No. 40 will get on the court to formally make it an 18th season.

“For sure. I’m going to make it happen,” Spoelstra said. “And, again, his impact on this team, especially in a year like this, where there’s been just so many unpredictable things thrown at you, to have that kind of leadership in developing and bringing stability to everybody in the locker room, whether you’re young or a 30-year-old veteran, UD is the guy who can bring that kind of leadership and stability.

“And you just can’t put a price or an analytic on it. And if you try to explain it to some people, they might not understand. But everybody in this building is really grateful to have UD here providing and doing what he does.”