Miami Jan. 24 (US): The Miami Heat have learned that the race is coming up. Until early in the fourth quarter, with a 23-point lead, the Heat players were telling each other the match wasn’t over yet.
They were right. And they coped with the moment — and then moved to the top of the Eastern Conference, the Associated Press reports.
Jimmy Butler broke LeBron James’ triple doubles record in Miami, Duncan Robinson scored 25 points and stopped the Heat’s furious attempt from the Los Angeles Lakers on their way to a 113-107 victory on Sunday night.
“I think these are important experiences we have to go through together,” Heat coach Eric Spoelstra said.
The win, along with losses from Brooklyn and Chicago, put Miami (30-17) ahead of the East, half a game ahead of the Nets (29-17) and a game over the Bulls (28-17).
Butler finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists for Miami, his 10th regular-season double with the Heat — one point more than James achieved in his four seasons in Miami.
Miami led 89-70 for fourth, pushing the lead to 23 with 8:38 left, and then had to avoid what became 32-13 in Los Angeles that made the Lakers within four last moments.
“To have that kind of pivotal moment, you can never get enough of it,” Robinson said. “They are invaluable.”
Caleb Martin scored 15, Pam Adebayo 14 and Gabe Vincent scored for Miami, wasting most of his first-half lead of 26 points.
James carried the Lakers again, finishing the game with 33 points — his 17th game in a row with at least 26 points — and 11 rebounds. Russell Westbrook scored 24 goals for the Lakers, former Heat goalkeeper Avery Bradley added 15 goals and Carmelo Anthony 11 goals.
“I’m in one of the best offensive areas I’ve been in my career,” James said.
The Heat was still without Kyle Lowry (a personal matter) and Tyler Hero (health and safety protocols). This was the fourth consecutive match that Laurie missed and the third for Hiro.
The Lakers have been without Anthony Davis for the 17th game in a row as he continues to recover from a left knee ligament injury. Davis was included on the question list on Sunday, which raised the possibility that he would finally return, but the Lakers decided he needed at least two more days.
“It’s getting close…but it’s not there yet,” said Lakers coach Frank Vogel.
The loss sent the Lakers to 23-24 — the first time since James’ junior season he’s played for a team with a losing record this season.
Miami flew out, opening a double-digit lead of just 5:12 into the game, going up 32-14 on 3-pointers by PJ Tucker with 3:36 left in the first quarter and taking a 39-25 lead in second after Max Strauss beat out the Hands The watch has a triple corner pointer over James’ outstretched arm.
The Lakers trailed by as much as 26 in the first half, their biggest deficit before the break this season, before James flexed some muscle just before the break. He scored the Lakers’ last six points in the second quarter, having advanced strongly through a double-team to one of those baskets, taking Los Angeles at 69-52 by the break.
“We had quite a few malfunctions and they made us pay for everything,” Vogel said.
Then came the assembly attempt. James grabbed an attacking rebound and scored 1:07 from the end to net the Lakers within 111-107, then stopped at the Heat’s next possession – but Bradley missed Tucker on a moving screen with 37.7 seconds left for a costly spin.
Tallinn Horton-Tucker had another spin on an inside pass with the Lakers losing four with 7 seconds remaining, and Miami would survive.
“In the fourth quarter we played the kind of basketball we want to play, but we dug ourselves a lot of hole early in the game,” James said.
Hint
Lakers: The Lakers had a three-night stay on their only visit to Miami this season, and arrived Friday night after playing in Orlando. They are not scheduled to leave until noon on Monday, then fly to New York for Tuesday’s game against Brooklyn. …James has not played in Miami since December 13, 2019.
Heat: Butler, who played in his 709th game including playoffs, received 10 assists at the end of the first half. … Miami kept the Lakers on 11 of 40 shots from a 3-point range, and provided 31 passes to the Lakers 20.
SPO Bros
Spoelstra often studies James’s film at home. But not a Lakers game movie. Spoelstra and his wife Nikki have two young sons, and the boys are big fans of James’ Space Jam: A New Legacy. Said Spoilstra: “It’s our entertainment two nights a week. We put on ‘Space Jam.’…Our family is enjoying the movie. I know our kids love it. It creates great joy for Spo Bros in our house.”
Give me five
Miami’s DeWayne Deadmon had a rare five-point possession—scoring while taking a blatant foul, one free throw from that, and then getting another field goal on the continuation after the slasher. It also helped the Lakers get a five-point trip, causing a blatant foul with Anthony, who made two free throws before Stanley Johnson fired a three-pointer at the Lakers’ extended possession.
major shift
The Lakers last game for the Heat was on April 8. The Lakers used nine players in that match. None of those nine are still with the Lakers. The Heat used 10 players in that match; Of those, only Butler, Adebayo and Robinson played for Miami on Sunday.
next one
Lakers: Visit Brooklyn on Tuesday.
Heat: New York hosts on Wednesday.