Heat’s late-game lessons continue: ‘We’re in the process of learning how to win games’
.JPG "Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra watches his team play against the Charlotte Hornets in the first half of their NBA game at Kaseya Center on Oct. 28, 2025, in Miami.")
Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has been pleased with the direction his team is trending in through the first two weeks of this season. After all, the Heat entered Tuesday as one of only five NBA teams that hold both a top-11 offensive rating and top-11 defensive rating.
“We’re still learning about our team,” Spoelstra said, with the Heat playing a different up-tempo style that has Miami operating at the fastest pace in the league this season. “There are some good things that are trending.”
But late-game execution has not been among the bright spots for the Heat early this season, as two of its first three losses have come in games where it held a fourth-quarter. In the Heat’s only other loss this season, it rallied from a double-digit second-half deficit to pull within four points in the fourth quarter but could not complete the comeback.
There was the eight-point fourth-quarter lead the Heat let slip away in its season-opening 125-121 loss to the Magic in Orlando on Oct. 22.
There was the one-point fourth-quarter advantage the Heat wasted in Thursday’s 107-101 loss to the Spurs in San Antonio to begin this current four-game trip.
The Heat also pulled within four points of the Lakers midway through Sunday’s fourth quarter before the Lakers blew open the contest to hold on for the 130-120 win.
“We’re in the process of learning how to win games,” Spoelstra said just before the start of Monday night’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome. “Our last two games were winnable games. Even if we didn’t play great in some of the quarters, we had one-point leads going down the stretch. That’s part of the learning process of managing all the different things that happen in a long NBA game and then finding a way to get the W at the end.”
Monday’s 120-119 gutsy win against the Clippers in Los Angeles represented a step in the right direction as the Heat (4-3) rallied from a five-point halftime deficit and a small two-point fourth quarter hole by making some clutch shots and timely defensive stops to get the road win and improve to 1-2 on its four-game trip.
“All of these are important lessons,” Spoelstra said following Monday’s victory, with the Heat set to close its four-game trip on Wednesday against the Nuggets at Ball Arena (9 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Sun). “You go to the Orlando game, it was a very winnable game as well. And it’s that adage that it could be any play that really impacts it and gets you over the top.
“I think it was a great game [on Monday against the Clippers] to come off last night [Sunday against the Lakers], when we had an opportunity to win and we didn’t get enough plays. Same thing in San Antonio. Tonight, we were able to really defend and execute down the stretch. We felt like we were worthy enough to win. It doesn’t always work out that way. But it was a good growth opportunity for our team.”
There were plenty of learning lessons along the way in Monday’s one-point win, as the Heat led by four points with 57.4 seconds to play and still needed to survive a potential game-winning shot from Clippers star forward Kawhi Leonard at the final buzzer.
After the Heat went ahead by four points in the final seconds, Clippers star guard James Harden rushed down and hit a three-pointer over guard Norman Powell to trim Miami’s lead to one with 19.7 seconds remaining.
The Heat was still in good position to hold on for the win, but couldn’t complete the ensuing inbounds pass. After Miami called out a timeout, Powell caught the inbounds pass and was immediately swarmed by Clippers defenders near the sideline to force a jump ball with 16.5 seconds to play.
The Clippers won the jump ball and Leonard dribbled down the court with the intention of hitting a walk-off game winner as the final seconds ran off the clock. But the Heat sent a late double team at Leonard, and his contested three-point attempt bounced off the side of the rim to clinch the one-point win for the Heat.
“I just kind of had a feeling in that second half that no matter what, it was going to end up in that kind of finish,” Spoelstra said. “But I was really encouraged and pleased with the defensive mentality that second half. The guys really did some difficult things. That’s a really skilled offensive team. And Pelle [Larsson] really sparked everything in that third quarter, just with his passion, his energy. And then Davion [Mitchell] and [Andrew Wiggins] showed me what they’re capable of on the ball or just making plays off the ball, really impressive. And Bam [Adebayo] continues to be just our leader.”
The Heat held the Clippers to just 48 points in the second half after the Clippers totaled 71 points in the first half. The Clippers committed 15 turnovers in the second half that the Heat turned into 23 points.
“It was a little bit uneven in the fourth quarter, but that’s what happens, usually,” Spoelstra said. “The game slows down a little bit, we missed some open shots. We were able to take that four-point lead. But Harden has a way. They needed some deep threes in this game. That was one of them. But a very good Miami Heat win.”
A satisfying Heat win, too, considering the close games that Miami has already lost early this season. The Heat also finished last regular season with a dismal 14-28 record in clutch games (one that has a margin of five points or fewer inside the final five minutes of the fourth quarter).
“Very satisfying, especially when we go back and look at how we were able to compete in that second half, that 24 minutes was our brand of basketball,” said Powell, who scored 21 points on Monday in his return from a groin injury that forced him to miss the previous three games. “The way we were able to come out in that third quarter, build a lead.
“They’re a good team. They’ve got great experience. Guys have been in close battles, tough battles, so they were able to make a run, tie the game back up. But I like our composure. Everybody talks about how young a team we are, but we stay composed, trust in one another, and we were able to get the stops that we needed and make the plays on the offensive end that gave us the win.”
This young Heat team that doesn’t feature a player older than 32 continues to learn about itself during this challenging stretch to begin the season. The Heat has already earned road wins over the Memphis Grizzlies and Clippers, and defeated a quality New York Knicks team in Miami
The Heat’s next test comes Wednesday against the Nuggets in Denver to close its four-game trip, a place the Heat has struggled in over the last decade.
The Heat has dropped eight straight regular-season games to the Nuggets in Denver. The last regular-season game that the Heat won in Denver came on Nov. 30, 2016, when Hassan Whiteside totaled 25 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Heat to a 106-98 victory over the Nuggets.
“I don’t remember the last time we won there in a regular-season game,” Spoelstra said. “It’s been a long time. Yeah, let’s stack up as much as we can. We’ll play it on Mount Everest if we have to.”
This story was originally published November 4, 2025 at 1:27 PM.
