Miami Heat shooting guard Josh Richardson emerged as a valuable role player for head coach Erik Spoelstra throughout the 2015-16 season, but he suffered a setback Friday when he partially tore his MCL. Richardson suffered the injury during workout on Friday and his return will depend on his rehab process.

A person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press that Richardson is expected to miss the start of training camp later this month and possibly a few more weeks from there.

Basically in terms of knee injuries it's the best thing that could have happened to Richardson because his ligament is only partially torn.

Luckily for the Heat and second-year sensation, it really wasn't the worst.

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That incident was blamed on a variety of structural issues that were exacerbated by an error made by the co-pilot. The other pilot, Pete Siebold, was seriously injured.

"I'll be back asap no worries", Richardson wrote on Twitter. But Richardson will likely miss at least part of Heat training camp, which begins on September 27. "But anywhere from like, they said, six to eight weeks, somewhere around there". "I know they're going to hold the fort down when I'm out".

Richardson made a pre-scheduled appearance at a store opening Saturday, arriving with the help of crutches and with his right leg in a brace stretching from his ankle to his mid-thigh. He was expected to compete with Dion Waiters, Wayne Ellington, and Tyler Johnson for the starting shooting guard position.

Johnson is the more appealing candidate to fill in at the 2 if Richardson isn't ready for opening night on October 26, but Spoelstra could opt to give Waiters starts and let Johnson lead the second unit.

Richardson averaged 6.6 points in 52 games with Miami last season, but saw his stock soar after the All-Star break.