The Heat didn’t really have any preseason scrimmages last year and star Jimmy Butler didn’t even play in a game.
But this year the Miami club is handling things a little differently and this Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Kaseya Center did follow that tone.
The result was a 101-99 Heat victory over the Pelicans, who also played with most of their starters. Miami led by as many as twenty points, but the game was decided in the final minutes after the New Orleans Pelicans started the fourth quarter on a 28-16 run to rally to within one point with 2:48 remaining.
The game-winner was decided by rookie Pelle Larsson, who sank two free throws with 6.6 seconds left to break a 99-99 tie. Nearly every available and healthy rotation player played for the Heat on Sunday in the second of five preseason games.
Also Read: Should the Miami Heat bet on rookie Kel’el Ware as the starting center? Here are the reasons.
The only players unavailable were Josh Richardson, who is still recovering from right shoulder surgery he underwent in March, and Alec Burks, who had the day off.
Butler has played in the first two games. Against New Orleans, he finished with four points, one rebound and two assists in 17 minutes.
Also, Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez Jr. returned to play for Miami after missing Tuesday’s preseason opener with a groin strain.
Herro scored 12 points, with four rebounds, three assists, and two steals in 15 minutes as a starter. Like Butler, Herro did not play in the second half.
Jaquez Jr. contributed six points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal in 17 minutes coming off the bench.
The Heat (1-1) will play their third preseason game on Tuesday against the San Antonio Spurs in Miami.
Favorite starting lineup
With Herro back, the Heat were able to open the game with their preferred starting lineup of Terry Rozier, Herro, Butler, Nikola Jovic and Bam Adebayo.
This is the quintet with which Miami will debut in the regular season. Because of the team’s injury problems last season, these five men never played together after the Heat signed Rozier in late January. This Sunday was the first time.
The results were positive as that starting lineup outscored the New Orleans Pelicans by two points in 14 minutes together during the first half. This group did not play in the last two quarters. The first five players used off the bench on Sunday were Duncan Robinson, Haywood Highsmith, Kevin Love, Dru Smith, and Jaquez.
Smith, who is one of three players on a two-way contract, has been one of the team’s primary reserves in the first two preseason games.
He finished with four points, three rebounds, five assists, two steals, and one block in 16 minutes against New Orleans. Bryant, Larsson, Nassir Little, Zyon Pullin, Josh Christopher, and Kel’el Ware entered in the second half.
Keshad Johnson, Isaiah Stevens, and Warren Washington were the only available Heat players who did not play.
Butler and Netflix
Butler said Saturday that he was pleased with the way Netflix’s 10-episode NBA series Starting 5, released Wednesday, turned out.
The show followed Butler, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, and Domantas Sabonis of the Sacramento Kings throughout last season.
Among the series’s revelations is how Butler coped with his father’s death in February. “I was really looking forward to it,” Butler said of the series.
“I like the result. The whole procedure was a lot of fun. I think they did an amazing job of highlighting what they needed to highlight.”
