Observations and other notes of interest from Saturday night’s 122-118 overtime victory over the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center:
— Shouldn’t have been this difficult.
— Not from up 24 early.
— Not with Luka Doncic lost to the Mavericks less than two minutes in.
— But you take it and move on.
— Especially on the second night of a back to back.
— On a night it seemed like Heat offense would rule, it was a night when Heat defense made the stands when needed.
— And so . . . still undefeated this season in overtime.
— Give Tyler Herro credit, he remains certain the next one will fall.
— Just as Bam Adebayo believes the next rebound is his.
— None bigger than after Jimmy Butler’s pair of misses from the line near the end of overtime.
— And even then, Butler had to make his redemptive free throws.
— This time, made both, for a 121-118 lead with 5.7 seconds left.
— Heat didn’t foul.
— And survived.
— Plot twists? This one had a season’s worth.
— With ample replays back in Secaucus, N.J.
— Intrusive, but essential.
— So who had two triple-doubles for Adebayo in one week?
— Or before the turn of the calendar?
— Or even this season?
— It is testament to the relentlessness.
— Here’s what I don’t get off a timeout with 8.6 seconds left in regulation and the opposition without a timeout: Why settle for a 3-pointer at the buzzer?
— When there is time to chase an offensive rebound, without the opposition calling time.
— When there is a chance to get to the line, with only a single point needed for victory in regulation.
— Butler had made just two of his previous 17 3-point shots when he attempted to end it in regulation.
— And there sure appeared to be plenty of room in the lane.
— The Heat had outscored the opposition 54-19 in their previous four overtimes.
— Not so much this time.
— But still found a way.
— Otherwise, it would have been the worst loss of the season.
— This is when the Heat desperately needed a second scorer.
— A veteran second scorer.
— With 2:15 to play, Butler was victimized by knee to knee.
— With a Mavericks challenge upheld and a foul ruled on Butler on the play.
— And then another dagger from Tim Hardaway Jr.
— In this one, like father, like son.
— But Butler wasn’t done, with a steal with 30.3 seconds left in regulation and the Heat down two.
— At 6 of 6 from the line to that stage, Butler made both for a 112-112 tie.
— The flip side of the Heat success this season with kid stuff was Saturday’s second half.
— The lack of composure was tangible.
— Particularly with Kendrick Nunn.
— But also with some of Herro’s shot selection.
— A reminder of how much Goran Dragic means.
— With a return not expected in either of the next two games.
— The ball movement simply stopped in the second half.
— Still, found a way.
— This was another one where Erik Spoelstra faith in Derrick Jones Jr. was apparent.
— And justified.
— Duncan Robinson’s range is such that he did not need to leave Dallas to make shots in Monday’s game in Memphis.
— But that only provided temporary relief.
— Meyers Leonard came out with a decidedly aggressive bent.
— More please.
— Less than two minutes in, and Doncic stepped on Nunn’s foot, turned his ankle, and limped into the locker room.
— That’s when his night ended.
— Butler had opened defensively on Doncic.
— With a conversion early in the second period, Nunn moved into fifth place on the Heat single-season rookie 3-point list.
— Make if four 70-point halves for the Heat this season.
— Already a franchise record.
— Heat had 73 at the break.
— And, then, the passing and movement stopped.
— A curious “personal reasons” absence for James Johnson.
— Which happens to keep both Johnson and Dion Waiters away from the trip.
— As are Justise Winslow and Dragic due to injury.
— So that meant the four of the Heat’s six-highest-paid players were not available.
— Representing $60 million in 2019-20 salary.
— Yet it also speaks to the upstart nature of this season’s Heat that none of those absences impacted what now has become the regular starting lineup,
— The thought is Dragic will be back after the trip, for the Dec. 20 home game against the Knicks.
— Still, a shame we were denied one of the season’s two Dragic-Doncic matchups.
— And a shame Slovenia was denied, as well.
— Yes, the NBA’s two-minute officiating report from Friday night said the Heat should have gotten to the line twice in the final seconds against the Lakers.
— No, it doesn’t change things.
— But it also means that there were factors beyond the Heat’s control at play.
— Which matters, since there assuredly has been consternation about coming up short in that situation.
— And, yes, the end of the game means more because it also has meant more in the NBA.
— It’s why there is the notion of closer.
— Just as it is reasonable to expect elite referees to be closers.
— Why yes, another Star Wars Night, this time on the road, as the Mavericks took hold of The Force.
