Miami Heat ahead Jimmy Butler headed on to Los Angeles following Friday night time’s loss to the Denver Nuggets within the hope of getting ultimate clearance from medical doctors there to not must miss further time this season to handle his sore proper knee.
The Heat beforehand had introduced that Butler could be restricted to just one sport in back-to-back units in December, with Friday night time’s 37:50 within the 124-119 loss to the Nuggets initially of the five-game journey precluding a Saturday look towards the Utah Jazz at Vivint Arena.
The Heat don’t play their subsequent back-to-back set till Feb. 10 at residence towards the Houston Rockets and Feb. 11 on the Orlando Magic.
Butler, 33, beforehand sat out the second night time of a back-to-back set this month on Dec. 6 towards the Detroit Pistons and the primary night time of a back-to-back set Dec. 14 towards the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In bypassing Saturday night time’s sport, Butler has now missed 14 of the season’s first 37 video games: two in a row because of left-hip tightness in early November, seven in a row in late November because of right-knee soreness, and in December, one with a gastrointestinal sickness, one with a sprained proper ankle, and three because of damage administration with the precise knee.
Butler is incomes $37.7 million this season, with three extra seasons underneath contract to the Heat at $45.2 million, $48.8 million after which $52.4 million in 2025-26.
The staff will meet Butler in Los Angeles, with a Monday night time sport towards the Los Angeles Clippers and a Wednesday night time sport towards the Los Angeles Lakers, earlier than concluding the five-game journey Saturday towards the Phoenix Suns.
Remaining out for the Heat on Saturday night time have been Dewayne Dedmon (NBA health-and-safety protocols), Omer Yurtseven (ankle surgical procedure) and Nikola Jovic (G League).
Kyle Lowry, 36, who performed Friday night time in Denver, was not on the damage report for Saturday night time.
Seeking extra
Center Bam Adebayo made clear after the loss in Denver that he was not happy with the 18-18 file the Heat took into Saturday night time’s sport.
“The thing about it, we don’t want to be mediocre. We don’t want to be in the middle of the pack,” he mentioned, with the Heat getting into Saturday in seventh place within the Eastern Conference, a playoff seed that may have them within the play-in spherical of the postseason.
The Nuggets shot a staggering .812 from the sphere in Friday’s fourth quarter to outscore the Heat 39-29 within the decisive ultimate interval.
“We pride ourselves in being able to find a way to win games with defensive stops going down the stretch and I can’t recall a stop in the last three or four minutes,” coach Erik Spoelstra mentioned within the wake of the loss, with the Nuggets 13 of 15 from the sphere and 5 of 5 on 3-pointers in that fourth quarter, overcoming an eight-point deficit within the interval. “I’m sure maybe there was one, but I just don’t remember it. It seemed like they were scoring or getting fouled on every single one of those possessions.”
Robinson’s file
With his third and ultimate 3-pointer Friday, Duncan Robinson moved previous Tim Hardaway’s Heat staff profession file of 806 3-pointers.
“I just feel very fortunate and blessed to get it,” he mentioned. “A lot of people contributed to it, certainly not just myself. So I’m grateful for that. I’ll definitely take a second to just appreciate it.”
Spoelstra mentioned it was a second that deserved reflection.
“I mean, it’s not nothing,” he mentioned. ” It’s fairly outstanding what he’s been capable of do and the way a lot he’s needed to overcome with the totally different path to get so far. I’m glad for him. And I do know Timmy was glad for him. I simply want it may have led to a win.”
Adebayo mentioned it’s significant that Robinson will additional set a brand new file with every 3-pointer he converts going ahead.
“It’s one of those things I always thought he could do and he achieved it,” Adebayo mentioned. “So now he’s breaking his record every time he makes one.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com