The Heat was up 24 points with fewer than four minutes left when Victor Oladipo’s leg gave out. He drove into the lane from the top of the key, but when he had Bobby Portis on his back hip, he elevated off his left leg, yet he didn’t take off completely, landing on his backside.

Caleb Martin and Duncan Robinson walked over to their hurt teammate first. Before they helped Oladipo stand up, he looked past Martin and shook his head. It confirmed to everyone watching on TV and in attendance that his season was likely over after all his diligent work to recover.

In the blink of an eye, his body betrayed him again, but this setback was the hardest to watch Oladipo face. The past four seasons were littered with injuries that defrauded Vic of his talents, but in some spurts of the Heat’s campaign, he was logging his most productive minutes in a White-Hot jersey.

During Game 3 against the Bucks, Oladipo played 19 minutes, converting four out of six field goals. In the second half, Vic dropped three in a row by dribbling past Portis in the paint for a fadeaway jumper, and he zipped down the court for a pair of fastbreak layups.

Oladipo limped to the locker room with the help of the trainers. The Heat finished garbage time and took a 2-1 lead in the series, but the atmosphere in the Kaseya Center was thick with anxiety and sorrow.

At the postgame presser, the win seemed meaningless to coach Erik Spoelstra. He said an evaluation of Oladipo’s injury would happen Sunday and that it was difficult to watch.

“It’s a great win, but when you see a player go down like that, and particularly a player like Vic who’s gone through so much in the last three years…It’s not a good feeling to see Vic on the floor like that.”

Spo also added that when Oladipo saw a stretcher come out for him, he refused it.

The Heat can worry about how losing Oladipo affects the group in the series. What concerns me is the frustration likely clouding his mind. By all accounts, Vic worked tirelessly after each mishap since Jan. 23, 2019, to get back on the floor and contribute.

He was never going to get back into All-Star form, but like a good soldier, he performed well in his role as a reserve. He was still capable of putting pressure on the rim and defending quick perimeter players. But after his knee buckled in Game 3, I’m not sure if Oladipo wants to keep this going after his contract is up. He has a player option for 2023/2024 that I expect he’ll opt in to, but following that, who knows?

If the end of his pro career is near, the version of Oladipo in White Hot won’t be what I remember him for. I’ll reminisce about the Black Panther in Indiana.

In 118 combined games between 2018 and 2019, regular season and Playoffs included, Vic was one of the league’s ascending two-way stars. He had an explosive burst off the dribble and was unafraid to catch a body in the paint. On defense, he had excellent timing when invading the passing lanes for a steal and was effective in stopping the ball outside.

During seven games of round 1 in the 2018 Playoffs, Oladipo went toe-to-toe with LeBron James, then a Cavalier. In Game 6, to hold off elimination, Oladipo snapped and logged a 28-point triple-double to send the series back to Cleveland. He got in the paint whenever he wanted and could detonate for a two-handed jam standing under the rim.

In Game 7 in Cleveland, Oladipo went out, dropping 30 points with 12 rebounds in a four-point loss.

Before the injuries mounted on, Oladipo spent every minute as a Pacer validating his status as the second pick of the 2013 Draft. He was honored with two All-Star selections, an All-NBA + All-Defensive Team spot and the league’s Most Improved Player award in 2018.

What I admired most about his game was the rage that he attacked the basket with. Like Brandon Roy, Derrick Rose and Yao Ming, when I think about Oladipo, I’ll wonder what he was really capable of.

Jimmy Butler said at the postgame presser that Max Strus “made himself a lot of money [Friday].” He wasn’t exaggerating. Mad Max hit Miami’s opening four baskets because the Bulls were quick to overhelp on Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. #31 would finish the game with 31 on his scorecard to help push Miami to round one of the Playoffs.

Butler beat Chicago on rolls to the basket, transition attacks, and baseline cuts for nine points through the first quarter.

The Heat had an opposite start on Friday to Tuesday’s Play-in loss at home against Atlanta. Versus the Hawks, the hosts allowed its rivals to convert 56% of its tries in the first quarter. Matched up with Chicago, the Heat’s man-to-man coverage was disruptive and held the visitors to 38.9% through 12 minutes.

Herro logged every second of quarter two and contributed six points, three dimes and three rebounds. He got into the lane in front of the drop coverage to hit a pair of floaters.

At intermission, Miami was up 49-45, beating Chicago on the boards by nine and doubling the Bulls’ free throw attempts. Tuesday versus the Hawks, the Heat gave up 26 second-chance points. Through the first half Friday, the hosts had only allowed two of those to Nikola Vucevic.

Defensively, it shut down Zach LaVine by closing out to his jumper on time, switching length on him at the perimeter and clogging the paint. In this period, he was held to three out of 10 makes, and the Heat even forced seven consecutive misses.

In the third quarter, Miami only made six field goals out of 26 and would miss its last seven of the period. Adebayo bricked all four of his attempts here, but three can be excused because they came after Patrick Beverly kicked him in the back of the head.

Adebayo momentarily lost his dribble in the paint, but at this point Beverly was airborne, and his patella came crashing into #13’s snook. It was contact above the shoulders. It should have been called a flagrant-1, at least, because of where the hit occurred and how it knocked Adebayo to the fetal position.

The referees, Josh Tiven, Tony Brothers and Karl Lane, took a moment to check it out, but they were too brainless to crack down on Beverly. Instead, they called a common foul. Next time it might take a player losing consciousness from a blow to the head before these blind mice make the right call.

Adebayo could have been concussed, and TNT’s Brian Anderson rambled on, “That was ruled as a common foul, by the way. Nothing excessive here from Beverly. I think he’s going for a block…”

In quarter four, Miami switched up coverages using the 2-3 zone plus man-to-man. Chicago attacked mainly from the outside, taking six of 20 paint shots in this frame.

In the final period, the Heat’s offense burned the Bulls, making 62.5% of its shots, plus 13 free throws. Strus added eight more points in the fourth. When Butler attacked from the right side, Strus curled into the paint from the left for a lay-in after the catch. Again, when four black jerseys surrounded JB in the mid-post, Strus was hit with the pass and canned a right-wing trifecta.

With under a minute to go, Caruso fouled Strus on a 3-point corner shot while Miami was up five points. Strus buried each freebie to extend the game to at least three possessions. The Heat defeated the Bulls 102-91.

The win over Chicago now puts Miami in eighth place for a rematch of the 2021 quarter-final with the Bucks. The group will not practice Saturday ahead of Game 1 Sunday.

In the Heat’s regular-season finale and official christening of the Kaseya Center, all I hoped for at this point, aside from a throwback night from Udonis Haslem, was one more “clutch game.” This outing didn’t end in a five-point difference, but luckily for everyone watching, the best of the lost season came in game 82.

Haslem, team captain, and 20-year veteran, checked in a few minutes into the first quarter. Instantly, it felt like 2009, watching #40 roll to the cup, hit post jumpers, and even splash three trays in his last 24 minutes of regular season ball ever.

It didn’t matter that it was only his seventh game of the season, and his first action since Miami’s loss on Feb. 2 to the Knicks. Haslem wouldn’t leave the only outfit and fanbase he’s known without a suitable bon voyage.

He logged 13 points in 12 first-half minutes. Somewhere in Brazil, international basketball folk hero Oscar Schmidt must have smirked and bowed his head in approval. Haslem scored more than Mão Santa’s mythical point-a-minute pace, leading the way for the Heatles at the half by two.

On a steal by Caleb Martin that sparked a fastbreak, UD ran a two-on-one with Duncan Robinson against Chuma Okeke. A give-and-return between the streaking Heatles resulted in Haslem finishing a two-handed lob. It was his first alley-oop since late 2014.

As Haslem was interviewed on the court by Bally Sports’ Will Manso, he said, “It’s a little personal. I get a lot of flak for not playing and sitting on the bench, so I think a lot of people just think I drink coffee around here…This was for them. This is their day as much as it is mine. This love affair I’ve had with this organization and city for 20 years is going to continue to grow and continue to grow. I’m looking forward to the next evolution.”

Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh were some of UD’s former pals in attendance. I’m disappointed to learn from my spiders there weren’t more. Alonzo Mourning sitting knee-to-knee with Pat Riley doesn’t count; he works as the vice president of player programs.

It leaves a sour taste in my mouth that others couldn’t sacrifice their time after all UD did in return as a teammate. If anyone ever needed protection, mentorship, or a shoulder to lean on in his 20 years of service, they got it.

It would have been splendid to see Ray Allen, Mario Chalmers, Shaquille O’Neal, or just more sometime teammates, but that’s asking too much.

Haslem went undrafted in 2002 following four years of college hoops at the University of Florida. He spent one year in France playing for Élan Chalon and then arrived in Miami as a rookie alongside Wade for the 2004 season. Haslem and Marquis Daniels were the only undrafted players that year on the All-Rookie team.

In the summer before 2004/2005, the Heat traded for O’Neal, rapidly turning into a contender. In that campaign, Miami would challenge the Detroit Pistons to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals but wouldn’t defeat the Dallas Mavericks for the title until June 2006. Haslem started 80 and 81 games, plus he recorded 6,359 minutes through both regular seasons and playoffs combined.

By 2010, Haslem’s role had shifted to a reserve as the Heat’s development of Michael Beasley continued.

Losing a starting spot and nearly seven minutes a game can be difficult for many guys in the league; the ones that separate themselves are the dudes who find a way to star with an alternative duty. Haslem evolved into that player for the Heat as it geared up for the next stage of its history.

Bosh and LeBron James were the prominent figureheads brought in during the summer of 2010 to assist Wade in at least a few more tries at glory. Haslem stayed in town, and he chose the Heat over a more lucrative offer from the Mavericks. Dallas put over $10 million more on the table than Miami, but it wasn’t his style to leave just for an extra “fistful of dollars.” Additionally, Wade, James and Bosh each took less cash so UD could return.

In year two of the Heat’s big three era, Bosh went down with an abdominal strain after 15 minutes in Game 1 against the Indiana Pacers in the Conference Semifinals. Haslem started the first and second matches of the series, but for the encounter, Spo started Shane Battier at the four from Games 3 through 6.

In this series, UD only averaged 16.9 minutes a night, but those numbers don’t accurately portray his impact. With the Heat minus an All-Star, the Pacers smelled blood and even took a 2-1 lead in Indiana. Miami tied up the series, and in Game 5, Tyler Hansbrough cracked Wade over the head on a drive to the rim.

Haslem saw the mugging up close and didn’t think much of the bullies standing on the opposite side. A couple of minutes later, in the second quarter, he reciprocated with two hands spiking Hansbrough in the face as he attempted a shot at the cup. The Heat would then go on an 86-58 run to finish the night with a dub and take the lead back to Indiana.

Getting even earned UD a suspension in Game 6, but he said he would do it again two days later at the Heat’s practice.

In those four years, #40 was a top locker room lieutenant and a fundamental cog in helping Miami win back-to-back titles.

When James departed for Cleveland, a new chapter of Heat basketball started with Wade, Bosh, and Haslem in command. By 2015/2016, UD’s role developed into mostly a mentor as the squad had two new rookies and was reloading for a shot at the Cavaliers.

Wade would then leave over a contract dispute with the front office that summer, but as the Heat were beginning a rebuild, a single player remained from the Big Three days: Haslem.

Two difficult years produced the draft picks that landed Miami Adebayo and Tyler Herro. Also in 2019, the Heat landed Butler in a four-team sign-and-trade while unloading the dispirited Hassan Whiteside and his hefty deal. Suddenly, the White and Red had a respectable squad again, with Haslem, as always, providing counsel.

In the 2020 season, after Miami’s Game 3 loss to Boston in the East Finals, the captain offered advice. Butler told me after the match, UD was telling the group to be the “nastier” team as far back as halftime. The group followed his recommendations, then defeated Boston in six and extended the series to six against Lebron’s Lakers in the Finals.

While Miami was down double-digits in the third quarter of Game 2 versus Los Angeles, Haslem delivered a raging speech as players and coaches listened around him. He called for a gut check. Not every guy who has logged 44 games in the last four seasons (at that point) could hold the attention of so many peers.

The morning of Game 7 of the East Finals of 2022, Max Strus told me that because of all UD’s experience, the Heat relied on him as its motivator. “Another guy on our team that’s been here, has done these, has been in Game 7s, has won championships…”

He may not have recorded a minute of postseason action then, or any year since 2016, but the Heat wouldn’t have made it that far without him. While he wore white hot, Miami competed in six NBA Finals, winning three.

Richie Havens, the first person to perform at Woodstock in 1969, would later sing in 2003, “can’t turn back the hands of time.”

If only I could for Haslem. I blinked, and now I can only talk about him with a minority of people who have seen him and know what he is about. Not every team is lucky enough to have a guy like Udonis, much less two decades. Aside from the lost tapes, I don’t know the Heat without him.