The Heatles handled the short-staffed Suns, improving to an 11-10 record. Tyler Herro flirted with a triple-double. Jimmy Butler’s nine straight points in the fourth quarter delivered the knockout blow. And Bam Adebayo erupted in the second half for one of his top showings of the season.  

 

In the first half, Adebayo struggled, missing three 3-point tries, including airballing one and falling on a close-range floater. But he came out of intermission, attacking the heart of the defense. From the third quarter on, he rim rolled, logged multiple putbacks and two jump shots for most of his 25 points, 12 rebounds and eight dimes. Four of his rebounds were on offense, too.

 

The Suns were absent Jusuf Nurkić and Kevin Durant, which significantly opened up the back line. Yet, seeing Adebayo take advantage of a tuneup game on his mother’s birthday was encouraging. 

 

This was only his third game of the season max cracking at least 25 points on at least 50% shooting (9/16). 

 

Of all his output, his nicest maneuver was taking the ball upcourt and scoring himself in the open court. A player of Adebayo’s athleticism and with his handle must be given more opportunities to showcase this extra dimension of terror. One can’t help but notice how that mandate has helped Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley blossom. 

 

Additionally, Herro was unstoppable, dribbling to the cup. And when the Suns broke within three points in the last five minutes, Butler swished a corner triple and used two screen rolls to get from the top to the cup for layups. 

 

The Heat won 121-111. The team also had 62 paint points, 20 on the break, 11 via second chances, 19 off turnovers and 22 from the bench. 

 

After the game, coach Erik Spoelstra credited Adebayo’s leadership for the turning point in the third quarter. “He was the one organizing everybody.”

 

Adebayo said the game plan was to make Phoenix’s Bradley Beal and Devin Booker take tough shots. 

 

Observations:

 

1. Dru Smith next to Haywood Higsmith, Herro, Butler and Adebayo was sharp defensively. It’s a combination that Spoelstra should keep using. After the game, Butler said Smith made it hell for anyone he guarded. 

 

2.  Heat made 60.6% of effective field goals, which is good enough for the 84th percentile of all games played this season.

 

3. Herro, Butler and Adebayo combined for 66 digits on 26 of 40 attempts. If they keep playing off each other at this high level, they will be able to avoid the Play-in tournament and go directly to the Playoffs in round one.

The depleted Heat went on tour to face the undermanned Celtics, getting smacked around and thrown to the curb. The champs mowed down coverages. Luke Kornet turned into Goliath, derailing smaller men with six blocks. And Bam Adebayo had another disappearing act.

 

Boston’s Payton Pritchard, Derrick White and Jaylen Brown did most of the damage with 14 artillery strikes. And Gang Green’s protections were as strict as a medieval lord during a famine, permitting the Heatles just nine of 25 paint shots during the first half, then shutting them down further and forcing 11 turnovers in the second.

 

Had things gone close to according to plan for the visitors, Keshad Johnson, an undrafted rookie on a two-way deal, wouldn’t have logged the first six minutes of his career in a second-half blowout.

 

Despite Boston’s superior talent, both squads were on the second night of a back-to-back, but only the hosts looked like a serious team.

 

Yet again, the self-proclaimed hardest-working, best-conditioned, most professional, unselfish, toughest, meanest, nastiest team in the NBA was softer in all of those areas than a despised rival.

 

This is just in: coach Erik Spoelstra contemplated testing temporary insanity like Pat Riley used to but couldn’t figure out which team member to sacrifice. He is waiting to go rapid-fire in the next film session.

Perhaps he shouldn’t tell the players that if the Celtics’ physical defense is going to neutralize them, he’ll save Boston the trouble and take them out himself, like vintage Riley after the Memorial Day massacre in 1985. But he should have Adebayo sit in the front row and continuously rewind his offensive lowlights for the season.

 

Adebayo, the team captain, is having his worst year as a starter. Jimmy Butler’s cape looks too large for him, like when Silvio Dante couldn’t handle the pressure of being the boss when Tony Soprano was in a coma.

 

He used to be a threat to score, but this was his ninth outing of the year, logging below 40% of his field goal attempts. He only had 12 last year in 71 games, and the season before that, it was nine times in 75 matches. Keep in mind that the Heat are nearly a quarter of the way through the year.

 

The captain’s mojo is missing like a boxer who has lost the sting behind the punch. He is taking slightly fewer shots in the restricted area and is down considerably in volume in his sweet spot- the paint non-restricted area. Accuracy has dropped by 8.8% and 12.7%.

 

Against no Kristaps Porziņģis, Monday’s game was the perfect opportunity for Adebayo to get back on track and it turned into another misused moment.

 

When asked what went wrong with the offense, he said, “We missed a lot of shots we normally make.”

 

The Heat got next to nothing from Duncan Robinson, too. He totaled five points on two of nine tries but missed all six from deep. Some of those were open-enough looks provided by Adebayo.

 

Likely because of the flight back to Miami, the team will not practice Tuesday, but it should. Don’t forget that Riley is no stranger to hopping off the charter and telling his guys to hit the hardwood. January and February are usually the “watch out” months that he’s warned about, but it behooves the Heatles to treat December the same way.

 

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The Heat overpowered the lowly Toronto Raptors in the fourth Emirates Cup match of the year, improving to a 9-8 record. Bam Adebayo recorded his eighth career triple-double, and the crew also set their season high in 3-point makes (21) after poor marksmanship in the first half.

 

The first quarter was a defensive battle. The hosts held the Raptors to 21 points and forced seven turnovers by pressuring passes and stripping the ball handler. They also deployed a 2-2-1 press and tight man-to-man coverage.

 

On offense, Tyler Herro and Jimmy Butler were the only ones with multiple baskets, while the rest of the team made three of 15.

 

Subsequently, the Raptors’ defense contested perimeter shots promptly for the start of the second quarter, and their attack amassed 40 digits. Jakob Poeltl didn’t miss on four tries from six feet to the cup and closer. R.J. Barrett scored by spinning his way to the cup, slicing twice through the middle and making a wing triple. Scottie Barnes added seven points from short and long-range, plus he made two freebies.

 

On the other side, the offense found itself after missing five shots in a row, three-and-a-half minutes in. Eight Heatles registered the next 12 of 17 field goals. On top of that, Herro, Butler, Duncan Robinson and Kevin Love made five straight shots past the midway mark of the period.

 

At halftime, the Heat was behind 58-61. They had 26 paint points, three on the break, six via second chances, 13 off turnovers and 17 from the bench.

 

The Raptors had 32 paint points, four in the open court, seven on extra tries, 12 off turnovers and 10 from the reserves.

 

 Then the hosts matched their second-quarter output with 38 points in the third quarter. Herro added two triples and used Adebayo’s handoff to dribble into the lane for a floater with contact. Adebayo scored five points and dished three dimes, including the connection with Butler on the prettiest play of the night- a contested outlet pass that the latter gently made off the glass. Butler did damage from the line and close range. And the rest of the squad added six of eight shots.

 

At one point, the defense slipped up during the period, giving up five consecutive Raptor baskets to Barrett, Ochai Agbaji, Barnes, and Davion Mitchell. Yet, it was mostly strict, permitting the visitors 38% accuracy.

 

The fourth quarter started with the Heat ahead 96-84. But the defensive intensity waned, allowing drives through the center and an uncontested triple. On offense, the 3-point shooting- seven of 15 makes- bailed out the hosts.

 

The Heat won 121-111. The team had 36 paint points, 14 on the break, 12 via second chances, 27 off turnovers and 42 from the bench.

 

Butler had 26 points on eight of 14 attempts, with two rebounds, six assists and two steals.

 

Herro put up 23 points on 44% shooting, with three rebounds, four assists, one steal and one giveaway.

 

And Adebayo logged 14 points on six of 16 tries, with 10 rebounds, 10 assists, three steals and one turnover.

 

The Raptors had 62 paint points, eight in the open court, 11 via second chances, 14 off turnovers and 19 from the reserves.

 

Poeltl recorded 24 points, making 10 of 11 shots, with 10 rebounds, one assist and two turnovers.

 

Barrett had 25 points on 10 of 18 attempts, with six rebounds, seven assists and six turnovers.

 

And Barnes had 24 points on 53.3% shooting, with 10 rebounds, 10 assists, one steal, one block and five giveaways.

 

Observations:

 

1. Jaime Jaquez Jr. had his strongest game of the season, making six of nine shots. He made two catch-and-shoot threes, broke into the lane for multiple layups in the half-court, and scored in transition.

 

In the locker room, Butler said, “I like when he’s aggressive. I like when he’s playing with so much confidence that he can celebrate.”

 

2. Adebayo also had his top playmaking night of the season, logging a 10 in assist-to-turnover ratio. His highest mark in the category before this game was five, set on Nov. 26 in the loss versus the Milwaukee Bucks.

 

Against the Raptors, five of his dimes came via handoff and five were regular passes.

 

3. The Heat logged 13 of 23 baskets in the restricted area, shooting 8.9 points below the league average.

 

4. The Heat took good care of the ball and had their season low in turnovers (8).

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The Heat won its second game in a row with its new starting lineup, putting down the Wild Horses, minus Luka Dončić.

 

Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, Jimmy Butler, Haywood Highsmith and Bam Adebayo had the Heat down 15-18 at the first substitution, nearly six minutes into the first quarter. Their biggest early mistakes were allowing consecutive interior breakdowns to Klay Thompson and Quentin Grimes for scores; then Derek Lively recovered two Dallas misses, hooking one back in and feeding Kyrie Irving at the arc with the other.

 

Yet, Highsmith defended Irving well, denying him at the rim and tracking his dribble from the perimeter to the paint to force another miss. On top of that, the Heat started deploying the zone at the end of the first quarter.

 

And Adebayo was the source of the offense, putting up nine points at long and short distances.

 

In frame two, Irving scored eight points, dribbling to his sweet spot for a jumper, making a second chance hook and nailing a trey.

 

But Herro and Butler feasted for the Heat. The former scored using the double screen to get free at close range and then blew by Irving for a layup. The latter produced at the line, in transition and on a baseline jumper.

 

Defensively, the Heat kept incorporating zone with man-to-man coverage.

 

At halftime, the hosts were up 56-51. The crew had 26 paint points, one on the break, two via second chances, 14 off turnovers and 18 from the bench.

 

The Mavericks had 30 interior points, none in the open court, nine on extra tries, five off turnovers and nine from the reserves.

 

Then Thompson gashed the hosts for seven points in the first few minutes of the third quarter. Naji Marshall and Lively combined for seven of eight baskets, too. Yet the Heat’s defense keyed in on Irving, preventing zero makes in three tries from deep.

 

For the Heat, Butler added eight points from the line and on drives into the lane. And Pelle Larson provided four baskets with no misses from deep and short range.

 

The Heat entered the fourth quarter ahead 89-84, but its small cushion quickly evaporated.

 

The protections failed to stop Irving from getting to the paint and splashing treys. Subsequently, P.J. Washington’s putback dunk extended Dallas’ lead to three points.

 

Next, Butler retook the advantage on a left-side reverse layup. But Irving snatched it back with a jumper over Butler.

 

Afterward, Herro took a dumb seven-foot shot, getting denied by Spencer Dinwiddie, and Larson had to foul Irving to send him to the line. Yet, Irving made one.

 

As Robinson checked in the ball on the sideline, Butler cut toward the basket, caught the rock and dunked through contact to tie.

 

In overtime, the Heat held the Mavericks to two of 10 field goals. Moves from Alec Burks, Adebayo and Butler sealed the win.

 

The Heat won 123-118. The team had 62 paint points, four on the break, 18 via second chances, 17 off turnovers and 45 from the bench.

 

Butler had 33 points on 11 of 17 attempts, with nine rebounds, six assists, one steal, two blocks and three turnovers.

 

Adebayo scored 20 points on 40% accuracy, with 11 rebounds, five assists and two turnovers.

 

Herro put up 18 digits on eight of 25 attempts, with 10 rebounds, five assists, one steal and one giveaway.

 

And Larson had 14 points, making six of eight shots, with five rebounds and one assist.

 

The Mavericks had 66 interior points, six in the open court, 24 on extra tries, 15 off turnovers and 37 from the reserves.

 

After the game, Butler affectionately said, “I hate to say it. Duncan made an incredible pass,” referring to the connection that forced overtime.

 

At the postgame presser, Spoelstra said, “It seemed like it was a foul,” regarding Butler’s basket to tie the game.

 

Observations:

1. Adebayo had a sharp first quarter but didn’t score again until early in the third frame. Three of his eight field goals were 3-pointers from the right corner and up top. Additionally, he had a season-high in 3-point attempts (6).

 

2. Highsmith disrupted Dallas’ actions but played only 19 minutes because he wasn’t feeling well. He was doing a fine job of defusing Irving.

 

3. Butler missed five free throws. Furthermore, it was his second straight game scoring at least 30 points. The last time he did that was in 2023-24, between Nov. 30 and Dec. 2.

 

4. Herro (10), Adebayo (11) and Kevin Love (11) had double-digit rebounds and Butler had nine. The Heat’s 57 rebounds is the second-best mark of the season.

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Jimmy Butler made up for lost time in a dominating effort, and the Heat’s defense locked up the 76ers in the second half, en route to victory. On top of that the hosts started a new lineup: Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, Butler, Haywood Highsmith and Bam Adebayo.

 

Butler carried the offense in the first quarter with a pick-and-pop jumper in the middle, a post-attack, a backdoor lob, and two fastbreak scores. But the squad missed 10 3-pointers, and some were makeable looks.

 

For the 76ers, Paul George kept maneuvering to his spots, hitting multiple jumpers at middle and close range, plus plowing to the hole for a layup and setting up Joel Embiid, beating Butler and Adebayo’s trap to the baseline. 

 

The closing of the first quarter was brutal for the hosts, too. Multiple turnovers set up quick baskets and trips to the line plus the team soiled itself covering the arc.

 

Subsequently, McCain started the second quarter scoring at close range against Adebayo in the drop, hitting a jumper in front of Herro in mid-range and spinning past Pelle Larson for a scoop layup. Two other quick baskets by Kelly Oubre in the open court piled on. 

 

At one moment, the 76ers had a 17-digit lead. Then five points from Dru Smith, six free throws from Butler and actions by Highsmith and Alec Burks ate into it. 

 

At halftime, the Heat was down 53-56. The team had 26 paint points, 10 on the break, 13 via second chances, seven off turnovers and 21 from the bench. Aside from Butler, the team was shooting 37% from the field. 

 

The 76ers had 30 interior marks, 11 in the open court, none on extra tries, 15 off turnovers and 13 from the bench. 

 

Next, Herro, Butler and Robinson emerged from intermission, connecting on four triples in nearly five minutes. After 76ers coach Nick Nurse called a stoppage, Robinson and Herro hit two trays, and the latter added two shots on the break plus a layup on a pick-and-roll set.

 

Defensively, the Healtes held the 76ers to five of 17 field goals in the third frame. 

 

Butler went to the locker room during the period and didn’t return until nearly midway into the fourth quarter.

 

The fourth quarter started with the Heat ahead 88-72.

 

Despite the Heat converting seven of 21 ventures, The crew kept beating the 76ers on the dribble and the guests’ weak side rotations were weak, too. 

 

On defense, the squad promptly bothered 3-point shots and held the 76ers to 15.5% below league-average efficiency in the restricted area.

 

The Heat won 106-89. The team had 44 paint points, 23 on the break, 18 via second chances, 14 off turnovers and 31 from the bench. 

 

Butler had 30 points on eight of 12 attempts, with 10 rebounds, five assists and one steal.

 

Herro dropped 18 points on 40% accuracy, with five rebounds, five assists and three turnovers. 

 

Robinson put up 13 points on five of 14 tries, with two rebounds, three assists, one steal and two turnovers. 

 

And Adebayo had five points on two of eight shots, with 13 boards, three assists, two steals, one block and three giveaways.

 

The 76ers totaled 48 interior marks, 20 in the open court, zero on extra tries, 17 off turnovers and 28 from the bench. 

 

McCain had 20 digits on 50% shooting, with four rebounds, four assists, two steals and two turnovers. 

 

George logged 18 marks on five of 13 attempts, with six rebounds, five helpings, three steals and three turnovers.

 

Caleb Martin provided 12 points on 41.7% shooting, with five rebounds, two steals and a block. 

 

And Embiid registered 11 points on five of 11 tries, with eight boards, five assists, one block and two turnovers. 

 

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra said the new starting lineup understands the core tenets and that keeping Butler “physically youthful” is the priority.

 

Observations:

 

1. McCain was taken by the 76ers one pick after the Heat chose Kel’el Ware. The former is a polished, confident offensive player and likely this year‘s top rookie. This doesn’t mean choosing Ware was a bad pick, but he’s barely in the rotation now. 

 

2. The Heat made nine of 11 baskets in the paint in the first half. They made nine of 20 attempts in the last two quarters. 

 

3. Butler had his top showing of the season. Seven of his eight baskets came in the paint; the other one in the corner. They were logged against Embiid, Martin and Guerschon Yabusele.

 

On top of that, he was pressuring the backline at a high level and was rewarded with 13 free-throw attempts, making all. 

 

4. Burke’s second-quarter boost was badly needed. All three of his field goals- the corner jumper behind Smith’s pin down, the scoop layup, and the step-back two-pointer over Martin- helped dig the Heat out of a hole. 

 

5. Dru Smith was accurate and had three steals- one was a strip and two were in the passing lanes. 

 

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