The Miami Heat, once known as a franchise filled with stability and known for winning championships are now just a middle of the pack team, just fighting to make the playoffs. They are living dangerously on the edge almost on a nightly basis.
Just 24 hours after coming up short following a huge rally from 22 down at home at the Kaseya Center against Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks, Erik Spoelstra’s team, this time, coughed up a 20-point third-quarter advantage to once again find themselves in yet another tightly contested game coming down to the final moment.
However, this go around, the results were different, barely.
A win is a win, and the Heat got a 98-94 victory Wednesday night over the Charlotte Hornets at the Spectrum Center, an 8-8 record (.500) at ‘Turkey Day’, and a sigh of relief, thanks, in part, to the late contributions of guard and sharp shooter Tyler Herro.
“From the mental toughness standpoint, we’re getting pretty comfortable in these kinds of games,” Spoelstra said. “I guess it’s seven out of 11 that have come down to the last shot – not just the last possession but the last shot. So, it was good to see us have to execute under duress down the stretch on both sides of the floor.”
In a contest where six-time All-Star Jimmy Butler resembled a 35-year-old, in his 14th year in the league, playing on the second night of a back-to-back, exited the game in the third quarter with a tight back and did not return to action in the fourth. This was a night Bam Adebayo was quiet and for the most part left his offense at home in the ‘305’, and Herro’s struggles continued from 3-point range. The Heat turned up their signature defense, which is a part of their culture that they have established and headed into Thursday’s feast in a better place.
“Just a collective effort from beginning to end,” Herro said. “A second night of a back-to-back is never easy.”
In the aftermath of Tuesday night’s heart-wrenching 106-103 loss to the Bucks, Spoelstra had emphasized the need for a complete defensive effort, more than the second-half defensive stand that proved to be too little too late against Lillard, who scored 37 & Co. the night before.
For the most part, he got that, except for the Hornets’ late surge, with Charlotte closing at .378 from the field and 17 of 51 from beyond arc.
What the Heat did not have an answer for and could not contain was LaMelo Ball, who came into the game second in the NBA in scoring at 25.6 points per game and closed with 32, albeit on an inefficient 11-of-35 shooting with 10 boards for the Hornets, who have free fallen and lost five of their last six. Brandon Miller had 21 points and rookie Tidjane Salaun scored a career-high 17 points.
The Hornets rallied from 20 points down to take the lead when Salaun, with ice water in his veins, drilled a corner 3 with 42 seconds left.
In the end, the Heat got by with 27 points from Herro, despite his 4-of-12 3-point shooting, and 22 from Duncan Robinson, with the duo of Butler and Adebayo limited to just 14.
Robinson closed 6 of 9 on 3-pointers. Butler shot just 2 of 2 from the field. For his part, Adebayo rounded out his stat line with 10 rebounds and 10 assists, for the near-triple-double.
“I’m thankful for Tyler, man,” Robinson said, as the Heat headed off into the holiday. “That’s what I’m thankful for at this Thanksgiving. A win is a win, especially second night of a back-to-back.”
The Heat host RJ Barrett and the Toronto Raptors on Friday.
The Hornets host Carl-Anthony Towns and the New York Knicks on Friday in a matinee.
