Jimmy Butler returns, leads Heat to comeback win over 76ers. Takeaways and details from victory
Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 106-89 win over the Philadelphia 76ers (2-11) on Monday night at Kaseya Center to begin a three-game homestand. The Heat (6-7) now enters a five-day break before continuing the homestand on Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks:
The Heat was a tired team playing on the second night of a back-to-back following a disappointing 2-4 six-game trip that spanned 12 days. But Jimmy Butler’s return from injury provided the spark that the Heat needed.
With the Heat falling to the Pacers in Indianapolis on Sunday to cap off its long trip, the Heat landed in Miami just before midnight on Sunday. Less than 24 hours later, the Heat played its first home game in two weeks.
“Look, basically what I told the guys at halftime is the guys that were grinding through this road trip, they put it all out there and we didn’t have a day to gather ourselves,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said following Monday’s win. “This was an unusual travel deal and we wanted to make sure that we weren’t making any excuses.”
The fatigue was real, but Butler’s return was exactly what the Heat needed.
After missing four straight games because of a sprained right ankle, Butler was excellent. He closed Monday’s victory with 30 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field, 1-of-1 shooting on threes, 13-of-13 shooting from the foul line, 10 rebounds, five assists and one steal in 34 minutes.
But maybe the most impressive number of the game was Butler’s plus/minus. Butler closed the win as a plus 29, with the Heat outscored by 12 points in the 14 minutes that he was on the bench.
“He really set the tone by imposing his physical will on the game,” Spoelstra said of Butler.
Butler started the game strong, scoring 11 of the Heat’s first 20 points before exiting the contest for his first rest of the night with Miami ahead by two points and 2:53 left in the first quarter.
By the time Butler re-entered the game with 9:50 left in the second quarter, the Heat was trailing by 17 points. The 76ers earned their biggest lead of the night a few seconds later, pulling ahead by 19 points.
But with Butler on the court for the rest of the second quarter, the Heat closed the period on a on a 26-10 run to cut the deficit to just three entering halftime.
The Heat carried that momentum into the second half, outscoring the 76ers 35-16 in the third quarter to take full control of the game and enter the fourth quarter ahead by 16.
The Heat pushed its lead up to 20 in the fourth quarter, turning a 19-point deficit into a 17-point win to complete the 36-point turnaround.
“I think I just did what I’m supposed to do at a decent level today,” Butler said.
Along with Butler’s big game, Tyler Herro added 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the field and 2-of-10 shooting on threes, five rebounds and five assists for the Heat.
Bam Adebayo didn’t score much, finishing with just five points. But he contributed 13 rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block for the Heat.
76ers star center Joel Embiid, who played despite being listed as doubtful for the game with an illness, recorded 11 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the field and 1-of-3 shooting on threes, eight rebounds and five assists in 31 minutes.
Rookie guard Jared McCain finished with a team-high 20 points for the 76ers.
After falling behind by 19 points with 9:23 left in the second quarter, the Heat went on to close the game on a huge 79-43 run against a 76ers team coming off a two-day break. The 76ers shot just 29.6 percent from the field and 5 of 29 (17.2 percent) from three-point range during that stretch.
“It’s big,” Herro said of the Heat overcoming fatigue to rally for Monday’s win. “I think it says a lot about our depth on this team. Some guys didn’t play on the road trip, but I thought everybody who played tonight impacted the game in different ways.”
Butler made his return, but the Heat was still not whole on Monday.
The Heat played the 76ers without two important rotation players, as Jaime Jaquez Jr. was held out because of a sprained right ankle and Terry Rozier was held out because of right foot discomfort.
Both Jaquez and Rozier played in Sunday’s loss to the Pacers. Jaquez left the game late in the third quarter after turning his ankle, but Rozier was able to finish the game.
X-rays on Jaquez’s ankle returned negative and an MRI was not required. Monday marked the fourth game that Jaquez, who has been a fixture in the Heat’s bench rotation, has missed this season after sitting out three games earlier in the schedule because of a stomach illness.
As for Rozier, he played through the discomfort in his foot for a few games before informing the team about it following Sunday’s loss in Indianapolis. Monday marked the first game that Rozier has missed this season after starting in each of the Heat’s first 12 games.
Along with missing Jaquez and Rozier, the Heat remained without Josh Christopher and Keshad Johnson against the 76ers. Christopher and Johnson are still in the G League as part of their two-way contracts.
The 76ers were without one of their best players in star guard Tyrese Maxey, who sat out his sixth straight game because of a strained right hamstring. Philadelphia was also without Justin Edwards (G League) and Lester Quinones (G League) against the Heat.
With Rozier missing his first game of the season, the Heat used its third different starting lineup of the season.
Duncan Robinson made his first start of the season, opening Monday’s game in Rozier’s place.
The Heat used a starting lineup of Herro, Robinson, Butler, Haywood Highsmith and Adebayo against the 76ers.
“Those are our most experienced guys in our program, so they understand exactly what we’re trying to get to,” Spoelstra said of the new starting unit. “Even though we’ve made some adjustments, they know what our core tenets are.”
While Herro, Robinson, Butler and Adebayo have been Heat teammates since 2019 and Highsmith has been with the Heat since December 2021, this lineup had played just limited minutes together prior to Monday’s game.
The Herro-Robinson-Butler-Highsmith-Adebayo unit logged just two minutes together this season prior to Monday’s contest. This five-man group didn’t play any minutes together last season.
On Monday, this lineup built a 20-15 lead over the first 8:12 of the game before the Heat made its first substitution of the night.
This group then went on a 17-9 run over the first 6:26 of the second half to turn a three-point halftime deficit into a five-point lead before making its first substitution of the third quarter.
The Heat’s starting lineup closed Monday’s win as a plus 12 in 15 minutes together.
After falling out of the rotation, Dru Smith and Alec Burks emerged to provide a spark off the bench against the 76ers.
The Heat went with an 11-man rotation on Monday on the second night of the back-to-back, using Pelle Larsson, Kevin Love, Josh Richardson, Nikola Jovic, Smith and Burks off the bench.
Smith logged his first minutes since Nov. 2. He didn’t play in seven straight games before entering Monday’s contest.
Burks received five straight DNP-CDs before entering Monday’s game.
The decision to play Smith and Burks proved to be a smart one, as they helped spark the Heat’s second-quarter run to trim a 19-point deficit to just three entering halftime.
Smith contributed five points, two rebounds and one assist while playing the final 9:17 of the second quarter. He posted a plus/minus of plus 15 during that stretch.
Burks recorded seven points, four rebounds and one assist while playing 9:10 in the second quarter. He was a plus 15 during that span.
“That’s why we have our bench for — to go in there and give us a spark, give us some life and that’s what they did,” Spoelstra said. “Dru and Alec, they’ve been chomping at the bit. And they’ve been preparing and they’re ready, and they gave us a great spark.”
After their quality first-half minutes, Smith and Burks also played extended minutes in the second half.
Smith ended the win with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 shooting on threes, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in 25 minutes off the bench. He was a plus 23 in his time on the court.
Burks finished the victory with seven points, six rebounds and three assists in 19 minutes off the bench. He shot just 1 of 6 on threes, but was still a plus 27 while on the court.
Rookie Kel’el Ware entered late in the game, subbing in with 1:02 left in the fourth quarter and the Heat already ahead by 17 points.
Thomas Bryant was the only available Heat player who did not play on Monday.
Caleb Martin played his first game against the Heat since leaving to join the 76ers in free agency this past summer.
Martin was in his usual starting role for the 76ers, finishing Monday’s game against his former team with 12 points, five rebounds, two steals and one block in 29 minutes.
Martin’s return brought back memories of his productive three-season stint with the Heat. His return also brought back memories of how his Heat departure played out in free agency.
Martin turned down an offer from the Heat that would have paid him $65 million over five seasons because he and others around him expected more money in free agency.
Instead, Martin ended up signing a smaller four-year contract that includes $35 million guaranteed and can reach up to $40 million with bonuses to join the 76ers.
“I love Caleb,” Spoelstra said before Monday’s game. “I’ll always root for him. I really respect him and I love him for who he is, how he represents himself, who he is as a competitor and how he is off the court. All of those kinds of qualities, he really draws you in and his story is just so unlikely.”
The 76ers also started another familiar face in Kyle Lowry, who spent two full seasons with the Heat before he was traded midway through last season as part of the deal that brought Rozier to Miami.
In his fourth game against the Heat since that trade, Lowry went scoreless in 19 minutes for the 76ers on Monday.
While it was Martin’s first game back in Miami since leaving the Heat, there was not a tribute video for him. The Heat reserves tribute videos for returning players who either won an NBA championship or made an NBA All-Star Game while with the team.
This story was originally published November 18, 2024 at 9:58 PM.
