Celtics forward Kelly Olynyk said Saturday his sprained right shoulder is improving “slowly but surely,’’ but he has yet to resume basketball activities. Olynyk suffered the injury after he made a pump-fake and Clippers center DeAndre Jordan collided with him during the Celtics’ Feb. 10 win over Los Angeles.

Initially, the Celtics said Olynyk would likely return after the All-Star break. But that turned out to be wishful thinking, as Olynyk said Feb. 19 he could be out 3-4 weeks.

Saturday, he was reluctant to update his timeline. He said he has mostly worked on shoulder-strengthening exercises to allow him to play pain-free.

“I would say it’s getting better slowly but surely,’’ Olynyk said before the Celtics’ 101-89 win over the Heat. “Like I said before, it’s tough with these things. They just come along slowly and then you hit a stride.’’

Olynyk, who is averaging 10.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, said it was difficult to watch Boston lose two of three games during its recent road trip. This season the Celtics have a 6.4 net rating — off­ensive rating subtracted by defensive rating — when Olynyk is on the floor, the highest on the team.

“You’ve just got to do what you can to get yourself back as quick as possible,’’ he said.

Celtics still looking

With the buyout market beginning to show some clarity, Celtics coach Brad Stevens said the team does not appear close to filling its empty roster spot.

“There’s been no real talk from our end,’’ he said.

Stevens has said that the Celtics will be looking for a player who brings versatility, but he has also made it clear the team will not fill the opening out of haste.

Players waived after March 1 are not eligible to take part in the playoffs for their new teams.

Former Nets forward Joe Johnson, perhaps the prize of the buyout market, signed with the Heat after clearing waivers Saturday.

Playing his second game with the Mavericks since being bought out by the Celtics, forward David Lee had 14 points and 14 rebounds in 25 minutes in Dallas’s win over the Nuggets on Friday.

Collegial rivals

When Celtics forward Jae Crowder played for Marquette, former Golden Eagles star Dwy­ane Wade used to go back to the Milwaukee campus to play in pickup games.

The two players have developed a friendship over the years.

“I was messing with him today,’’ Crowder said. “I said, ‘I don’t know how much longer you got, but I enjoy playing against you.’ . . . It’s a treat. I do personally enjoy it because he’s a good friend of mine. We’ll keep battling along until he rides into the sunset.’’

Crowder had 14 points and four rebounds on Saturday and Wade scored 19 points.

Eastern jockeying

The regular season is nearly three-fourths complete, so the congested Eastern Conference standings are beginning to appear more meaningful. But Stevens and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said there is no use getting distracted by the order just yet. “I think we’re all aware,’’ Stevens said. “I just think it’s not relevant to playing the next possession . . . Everybody is aware, but we’re not obsessing about it,’’ Spoelstra said. “You’ll throw on the TV or you follow the other teams, it’s getting highly competitive.’’ . . . Celtics forward Jonas Jerebko played after missing a portion of Friday’s practice with a sore ankle. Avery Bradley twisted his ankle against the Heat but Stevens said he thinks the guard is fine.

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach @globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.