Wins are important, but so is the health of key players at this late stage of the season.
It was a night of mixed emotions, as the Eastern-Conference leading Heat (46-24) managed to escape with a 105-98 victory over the Detroit Pistons (18-51) on Tuesday night at FTX Arena despite star Jimmy Butler exiting the contest early because of a sprained right ankle.
Butler tweaked his right ankle in the second quarter and did not play in the second half.
Even in a win, it was a turbulent night for the Heat and not only because of Butler’s injury. The Pistons, which entered with the NBA’s third-worst record, led by five points entering the fourth quarter.
The two teams then traded blows in a final period that included seven lead changes.
But the Pistons’ final lead came when it was ahead by one with 4:33 to play. The Heat then closed the game out on a 19-11 run powered by Tyler Herro, Max Strus and Bam Adeabyo to come away with the win.
Herro totaled 29 points on 8-of-15 shooting, five rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes. He scored nine points in the fourth quarter.
Strus, who did not play in the first half and did not score in the first three quarters, came off the bench and provided a much-needed fourth-quarter spark. He scored the Heat’s first 13 points of the final period on his way to a 16-point fourth quarter.
Adebayo battled foul trouble for most of the night, but managed to finish with 16 points on 4-of-8 shooting, eight rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes. He scored eight points in the fourth quarter.
The Heat needed to overcome a shaky offensive performance to win. Miami shot just 40.3 percent on Tuesday.
The Heat now has a few days off before closing its season-long seven-game homestand on Friday against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Here are five takeaways from the Heat’s win over the Pistons:
Butler did not play in the second half after re-injuring his right ankle.
Butler came up limping after a drive to the basket midway through the second quarter, but remained in the game to play the rest of the period. However, he did not take the court to open the second half as Gabe Vincent started the third quarter in his place.
The Heat ruled Butler out for the second half because of a sprained right ankle. He ended the night with eight points on 2-of-9 shooting, two rebounds and three assists in 18 first-half minutes.
Butler has already missed six games this season because of a sprained right ankle — three in November and another three in January.
The start of the playoffs are just a month away, as the Heat has just 12 games remaining on its regular-season schedule. With just one game — Friday against the Thunder — in the next five days, it could make sense for Miami to rest him for at least the rest of the week to make sure he’s 100 percent for the stretch run.
Butler has missed 22 games this season — 12 because of a tail bone contusion, six because of a sprained right ankle, two because of left big toe irritation, one because of right big toe irritation and one because of sinus congestion. The Heat is 13-9 without him this season.
Butler entered averaging a team-high 21.4 points and 1.8 steals this season.
Coach Erik Spoelstra has said multiple times in recent days that the Heat has become “dependent” on Herro’s bench scoring. The was again true Tuesday.
With the Heat’s offense off to a rough start, the Pistons led by seven points with 5:18 left in the second quarter. But that’s when Herro sparked a 19-6 run to close the period and help the Heat build a 57-51 lead entering halftime.
Herro scored 12 of Miami’s 19 points during that run.
Herro totaled 17 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field, 2-of-4 shooting on threes and 7-of-9 shooting from the foul line in the second quarter. He has scored at least 12 points in eight consecutive second quarters.
After scoring 20 points in the first half, Herro went on to score nine points in a hard-fought fourth quarter to help the Heat hold on for the win.
Herro is the front-runner for the Sixth Man of the Year Award as the NBA’s top bench scorer with 21 points per game as a reserve this season.
Tuesday provided another glimpse at what the Heat’s bench rotation could look like in the playoffs.
Herro and center Dewayne Dedmon, who have been fixtures in the bench rotation this season, were the first two players used off the Heat’s bench on Tuesday.
Then guard Victor Oladipo and forward Markieff Morris entered a few minutes later to complete the Heat’s nine-man rotation against the Pistons. Oladipo and Morris returned from extended absences last week.
Oladipo finished with two points on 1-of-2 shooting and two assists in 16 minutes. Morris finished with nine points on 3-of-6 shooting, four rebounds and one assist in 16 minutes.
That left regulars Gabe Vincent and Max Strus out of the first-half rotation against the Pistons. But Butler’s injury and absence led to Vincent starting the second half in his place and Strus contributed important fourth-quarter minutes.
The Heat’s rotation will continue to evolve over the final four weeks of the regular season. Miami has 12 games left on its regular-season schedule.
There isn’t as much uncertainty regarding the Heat’s starting lineup, as it has used Kyle Lowry, Duncan Robinson, Butler, P.J. Tucker and Adebayo to open games throughout the season when all five have been available.
Caleb Martin, who missed his third straight game because of a hyperextended left knee, was the only member of the Heat’s 15-man roster out on Tuesday. Martin’s return could force a tweak to the rotation, as he has been a consistent and important part of the Heat’s bench mix this season.
Adebayo battled foul trouble and Lowry turned in another low-scoring performance.
Adebayo started the night strong with six points and three rebounds in eight first-quarter minutes. But he picked up his third foul with 9:51 left in the second quarter and did not play again in the first half.
Adebayo then was called for his fourth foul just 2:34 into the third quarter and spent the rest of the period on the bench. He was able to play the entire fourth quarter, though.
And Lowry again didn’t take many shots, as he finished with just two points on 0-of-3 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 shooting from the foul line.
The Pistons were already a heavy underdog before rookie Cade Cunningham was ruled out.
Detroit entered with the NBA’s third-worst record, better than only the Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets. The Pistons also entered with the league’s third-worst offensive rating, sixth-worst defensive rating and second-worst net rating.
Only the Pistons, Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings are ranked in the bottom 10 in both offense and defense.
But when Cunningham was ruled out just 90 minutes before tipoff because of a non-COVID illness, the gap between the Pistons and the Heat looked to grow even wider. Detroit fell to 1-14 in games without Cunningham this season.
Cunningham, who was the top pick in last year’s draft, is averaging 16.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.1 steals this season. He has averaged 22.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and six assists in 10 games since the All-Star break.
Former Heat guard Rodney McGruder started in Cunningham’s place. It only marked McGruder’s second start of the season.
The Heat entered Tuesday’s matchup as a 13.5-point home favorite. It’s tied for the second-most points that Miami has been favored to win a game by this season, but the Pistons were able to keep it close for most of the night.
