The 14-point lead was down to one. Erik Spoelstra recognized it was go-time. So with 6:51 to play, Jimmy Butler was summoned off the bench, as he typically has been during such make-or-break fourth-quarter moments for the Miami Heat.
But that wasn’t the only move at that stage by Spoelstra. As Butler entered in place of Josh Richardson, Kevin Love was inserted by the Heat’s coach for Orlando Robinson.
Butler and Love have become a thing. A winning thing.
Even with one (Butler) as a starter and the other (Love) as a reserve, it has been the chemistry between the two 30-something veterans that has served as a stabilizing force for the Heat amid the ongoing absence of center Bam Adebayo.
So with Adebayo missing his fourth consecutive game with a bruised left hip, it was Butler and Love who helped provide salvation in the 116-114 victory Monday night in Charlotte that improved the Heat to 13-10 heading into Wednesday night’s rematch between the teams, this time at Kaseya Center, at the start of a four-game homestand.
“It shouldn’t be a surprise,” Spoelstra said of the chemistry between Love, 35, and Butler, 34. “You have two great competitors, two suρer-high-IQ players. They understand the nuances of gameplanning and how teams are trying to scheme against them. It’s a great symbiotic relationship.
“Jimmy’s an attacker by nature. K-Love is a great passer. So he gets Jimmy opportunities off the ball and off of cuts and rip screens. But he also spaces the floor extremely well. And Jimmy loves finding him as a target behind the 3-point line.”
Which is exactly the way it played out on a night the Heat again lacked Adebayo, Tyler Herro (ankle) and Haywood Highsmith (back).
Butler scored 23, fueled by his 8 of 9 from the foul line.
Love closed with 19, shooting 4 of 8 on 3-pointers.
From Butler, it is expected, the Heat practically with a Jimmy Watch as Butler takes his final rest at the start of fourth quarters. But what Love has been providing recently has been particularly settling, since Orlando Robinson hardly has the polish for such closing situations at center, and Thomas Bryant has struggled to meet the backup center mandate sought when he was added as a free agent in the offseason.
“We were just talking about that, how you can see it starting to click every game he gets out, getting more comfortable and letting it fly,” forward Caleb Martin said of Love’s recent contributions. “That’s when he’s at his best, just letting it go. So that’s huge.”
It hardly was the cleanest of closes on Monday night, with the Heat outscored 37-27 in the fourth quarter. They survived when Hornets guard Terry Rozier was long on a 44-foot heave just before the final buzzer, but it was Love who was trusted during the final defensive sequences.“I can’t speak enough about Kevin and his leadership, his presence, that highly decorated experience,” Spoelstra said. “It’s championship-level experience. He’s great for our young guys, but boy is he a great complement to Jimmy. They have a great connection and synergy when they’re out there together. That’s because really good players, really high-IQ players, there’s an unspoken language that only they understand and they have that.”
The Heat outscored the Hornets by 13 with Butler on the court Monday night, by eight in Love’s minutes, the two best plus/minus numbers for Spoelstra’s team.
Eventually, there again will be Herro and Adebayo at the close. But for now, Love has stepped up to the degree that Butler does not necessarily have to do it on his own, the Heat on Monday able to survive two bad late turnovers by Butler.
“We need to get healthy,” Love said. “We’ve kind of been struggling with a little bаttle of attrition right now, guys in and out of the lineup.”