MIAMI — Against an opponent 17 1/2 games ahead in the standings, the Miami Heat gave themselves a chance Friday night.
As did the Boston Celtics’ injury report.
So against an opponent lacking Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis, Erik Spoelstra’s team got back to stepping up against elite competition, fighting the good fight for extended stretches, just as it had in recent games against the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves.
The upshot, though, was troublingly familiar, this time a 103-91 loss that extended the losing streak to six and dropped the Heat eight games below .500 for the first time since the 2016-17 season.
While it is safe to say it will take play-in magic for a playoff berth this season, it’s not exactly as if play-in tickets can yet go on sale, with the Heat facing the possibility of closing last among the four Eastern Conference play-in teams, a 10th-place finish certainly within the realm.
This time there were 23 points from Andrew Wiggins, 19 from Tyler Herro and 12 points and nine rebounds from Davion Mitchell.
And it wasn’t enough, not with Bam Adebayo limited to nine points, and not with Jayson Tatum going for 28 points and Jrue Holiday 25 for the Celtics.
“We played hard and competed hard,” Spoelstra said. “Visually, that’s what I want to see.”
What the Heat also saw was an opponent of a far higher pedigree.
“Their defense is good,” Herro said. “They were able to take us out of a lot of what we were trying to get to.”
And, so, a quick turnaround for the Heat for a Saturday night game against the Memphis Grizzlies at the start of a two-game trip that concludes Monday night against the New York Knicks.
“That’s the good thing about the NBA,” Adebayo said, “we have a game tomorrow. Short-term memory.”
Five Degrees of Heat from Friday night’s game:
1. Closing time: The Celtics led 30-23 at the end of the first period, with it tied 50-50 at halftime. The Heat then went up five several times in the third quarter, before the Celtics took a 77-76 lead into the fourth.
Spoelstra then rested both Herro and Adebayo at the start of the fourth quarter, before reinserting Adebayo only to see the Celtics take a 86-79 lead with 9:45 to play. Herro then returned with 8:34 to play and the Heat down 88-79.
By then the Celtics were on a roll that the Heat were unable to stop.
“They can just go quick,” Spoelstra said of a Celtics offense fueled by 3-pointers. “If you make a mistake, they’re a team that’s going to make you pay.”
2. Lineup changeup: Spoelstra turned to his 20th lineup of the season, benching Kel’el Ware and Mitchell in favor of Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Duncan Robinson, while remaining with Adebayo, Herro and Wiggins.
“We’ve tried a lot of things,” Spoelstra said. “It’s not working.”
Ware did not enter until 1:35 remained in the opening period, after the Heat previously fell to an early 14-point deficit.
Mitchell entered earlier, as Spoelstra’s first reserve.
Neither Robinson nor Jaquez scored in the first half.
Ware wound up playing only 15 minutes, with seven points and three rebounds.
3. No Rozier: In addition to Ware and Mitchell being shuffled to the second unit, Terry Rozier fell out of the rotation, with Pelle Larsson getting early minutes off the bench after his hustle play in Wednesday night’s loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
It is the second time in a month Rozier has been shuffled out of the mix, also held out of a pair of games last month against the Atlanta Hawks, before not only returning to the mix but also starting two games.
Larsson played 16 minutes, closing with two points.
“The bench played well,” Spoelstra said, with Mitchell providing much of that spark.
4. Force feeding: The Heat continued to push the ball to Wiggins, whose 21 shots were a team high, six more than Herro attempted.
Wiggins also did it on both ends, taking the initial defensive assignment on Tatum, who stood 7 of 18 from the field through three quarters.
But the Heat also continue to play Wiggins as more of a shot creator than he is.
Wiggins closed 9 of 21 from the field, including 3 of 8 on 3-pointers.
5. Again limited: A game after being limited to six points on 2-of-7 shooting in the loss to the Clippers, Adebayo again was largely a passive offensive presence.
Adebayo had seven points on three shots at halftime, attempting to get teammates involved at the cost of his own scoring.
“Tonight, I thought we were making the right plays and Bam was making the right plays,” Spoelstra said. “Obviously, you want to try to get him involved.”
The comedown comes after Adebayo scored 22 or more in the four games prior to the loss to the Clippers, including a season-high 34-point outing against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“It’s one of those things where Coach wants us to move the ball,” Adebayo said of the sharp two-game drop in his shot total.
Originally Published: March 14, 2025 at 9:21 PM EDT
