ORLANDO \u2014 Just when you thought any worse wasn\u2019t possible after blowing an eight-point overtime lead in Detroit at the start of the week, it got worse for the Miami Heat at the end of the week.<\/p>\n
Against a severely depleted Orlando Magic roster, the absence of Jimmy Butler hardly appeared to register through the first three quarters for Erik Spoelstra\u2019s team, with the Heat racing to a 25-point lead.<\/p>\n
And then, a collapse of epic proportions, and now, a three-game losing streak following Saturday night\u2019s 121-114 loss at Kia Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are tough lessons that we all have to learn,\u201d Spoelstra said. \u201cWe all had our fingerprints in that loss.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was that devastating, that complete, the Heat outscored 37-8 in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
37-8.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are tough, tough-ass lessons to complete a game,\u201d Spoelstra said.<\/p>\n
On a night when the offense was flowing at season-best level early, it couldn\u2019t have looked any worse at the close.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt all kind of went downhill,\u201d guard Tyler Herro said.<\/p>\n
The Heat shot 2 of 18 from the field in the fourth, 0 for 8 on 3-pointers. And while all that was happening, Cole Anthony was scoring 13 of his 35 points in that period.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us,\u201d Heat center Bam Adebayo said, \u201cdefinitely a teaching point.\u201d<\/p>\n
With Butler back in Miami dealing with a stomach ailment and with backup center Kevin Love away from the team due to a personal matter, the Heat still seemingly had more than enough to push past a Magic rotation lacking the team\u2019s three best players.<\/p>\n
After consecutive losses to the Pistons and Oklahoma City Thunder, and in the wake of two weeks of speculation about Butler\u2019s long-term future, the Heat appeared on the way to crafting an exhale.<\/p>\n
But against a Magic roster lacking Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs, among others, it fell apart.<\/p>\n
In Butler\u2019s absence, the Heat got 23 points apiece from Adebayo and Terry Rozier and 22 from Herro, on a night Spoelstra tinkered with his starting lineup beyond the necessity with Butler\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n
Next up for the Heat is a Monday night visit by the Brooklyn Nets, followed by a two-day Christmas break, and then a return engagement on Thursday on the Magic\u2019s court.<\/p>\n
Five Degrees of Heat from Saturday night\u2019s game:<\/p>\n
1. Game flow:<\/strong>\u00a0The Heat led 40-28 after the first period, at 12 of 14 from the line in the period, winding up with their highest-scoring quarter of the season.<\/p>\n The Heat then moved to a 76-56 halftime lead, their highest-scoring half of the season.<\/p>\n From there, though, the Magic closed within 90-80 late in the third period with a 12-0 run that was quelled by a Pelle Larsson three-point play.<\/p>\n The Heat then went into the fourth quarter up 106-84, only to later see the Magic come all the way back from their 25-point deficit.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just became an absolute avalanche,\u201d Spoelstra said.. \u201cThe momentum just shifted from there.\u201d<\/p>\n 2. Sizzle segments:<\/strong>\u00a0Herro set the early tone with 13 first-quarter points on 4-of-5 shooting that included 3 of 4 on 3-pointers, also with two assists and two rebounds in the period.<\/p>\n Magic coach Jamahl Mosley entered aware of the range that Herro has expanded this season.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s shooting from any and everywhere right about now,\u201d Mosley said. \u201cAnd I think that\u2019s one thing you\u2019re alert for and what he\u2019s doing. He\u2019s shooting from the four-point line.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s finding different ways. He\u2019s getting steals, getting out on the break, shooting 10 3s a game.\u201d<\/p>\n Rozier then came on with 12 second-quarter points, giving him 18 at the intermission, after playing the entire second period.<\/p>\n That already made it Rozier\u2019s highest-scoring game since he scored a season-high 20 against Detroit in the third game of the season.<\/p>\n In the end, though, not enough.<\/p>\n While the Heat were outscored by 35 with Adebayo on the court, Herro said he deserved blame.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a lot of my responsibility with Jimmy not here,\u201d Herro said.<\/p>\n 3. New Look:<\/strong>\u00a0With Butler out, Spoelstra not only changed his approach in place of Butler, but also further shook up his starting lineup.<\/p>\n After opening Friday night\u2019s second half against the Thunder with Jaime Jaquez Jr. in place of Butler, Spoelstra gave Dru Smith his second career start and first of the season. Smith also had started a game for the Heat in 2022-23, as a rookie.<\/p>\n In addition, Spoelstra replaced Haywood Highsmith with Nikola Jovic as the starting power forward.<\/p>\n That opening lineup, rounded out by Herro, Adebayo and Duncan Robinson had not played together in a game prior to Saturday\u2019s opening tip.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a little bit different because of their frontline size,\u201d Spoelstra said of the Magic. \u201cWe\u2019re built for it with Jimmy. It wasn\u2019t anything against H.\u201d<\/p>\n The shift had Highsmith out of the mix until Jovic picked up his third foul with 6:09 left in the second period, after starting the previous 17 games.<\/p>\n 4. Magic short, too:<\/strong>\u00a0The Magic were even more depleted, with guards Gary Harris and Suggs ruled out of the mix pregame, with Orlando already playing without All-Star candidates Banchero and Wagner.<\/p>\n Banchero, who has been out seven weeks with a torn right abdominal muscle, has resumed court work, although it is unclear if that could have him back in time for the teams\u2019 Thursday rematch.<\/p>\n Wagner, who has the same injury, will be out for an extended period.<\/p>\n Then, late in the first quarter, the Magic lost Wagner\u2019s brother, backup center Mo Wagner, after he went down on a drive to the basket, immediately taken to the locker room with a knee injury.<\/p>\n And it got worse, with Magic starting power forward Wendell Carter Jr. ejected with two technical fouls with 4:27 left in the second quarter.<\/p>\n 5. Ware time:<\/strong>\u00a0Kel\u2019el Ware was first off the Heat bench, the No. 15 pick in June\u2019s NBA draft entering for Adebayo with 5:41 left in the opening period and following with a transition dunk 27 seconds later.<\/p>\n It was the first action for the 7-footer out of Indiana in 10 games, having last appeared in the Nov. 27 road victory over the Charlotte Hornets.<\/p>\n Ware also had the blocked shot that evoked Carter\u2019s ire and led to Carter\u2019s ejection, and then helped the Heat rebuild their lead late in the third quarter.<\/p>\n Ware closed with eight points and seven rebounds in 13:49.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought he was really good,\u201d Spoelstra said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ORLANDO \u2014 Just when you thought any worse wasn\u2019t possible after blowing an eight-point overtime lead in Detroit at the start of the week, it got worse… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13177,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"\n