No Jimmy Butler and little spark for Heat in 127-113 loss to Mavericks

After all the early 3-pointers that produced an early 11-point lead, after all the defensive traps that initially deflated the Dallas Mavericks, the Miami Heat ultimately needed a spark.

And that is when the reality of emptiness hit home in what turned into a 127-113 Tuesday night loss at AmericanAirlines Arena.

There was no Jimmy Butler to restore order, with the Heat’s leading man home due to flu-like symptoms.

There was no Tyler Herro, with the Heat’s embodiment of instant offense sidelined for a sixth consecutive game with a sore right foot.

And there was no Victor Oladipo, because there barely has been any Victor Oladipo since his splashy arrival at the March 25 NBA trading deadline, missing his 14th consecutive game due to a sore right knee.

So even without Kristaps Porzingis and Maxi Kleber sidelined, the Mavericks waited as the Heat offense went from sizzle to fizzle, eventually carried to victory by Tim Hardaway Jr. and Luka Doncic.

“We just played poorly tonight,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “That’s not to take anything away from Dallas. Dallas played extremely well and I think they forced us into that poor play on both ends.”

With Bam Adebayo able to provide only 11 points when cast as Heat leading man, his accompanying career-high 11 assists and nine rebounds weren’t enough.

Instead it was Hardaway, playing under the retired No. 10 of his iconic Heat father, who stole the night with 36 points, shooting 10 of 18 on 3-pointers, supported by 23 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists from Doncic.

“Once he caught fire,” Spoelstra said of Hardaway, “he became just a big X factor.”

For the Heat, there were 19 apiece from Goran Dragic and Duncan Robinson, 18 from Trevor Ariza and 14 apiece from Kendrick Nunn and Gabe Vincent.

The loss left the Heat No. 6 in the East.

“We’re going to fight to the end, as long as there’s going to be an opportunity to reach those higher seeds,” Dragic said, with six games remaining in the Heat’s regular season.

Five Degrees of Heat from Tuesday’s game:

1. Short again: With the late news that Butler would be out, (COVID-19 test negative, Spoelstra said), Andre Iguodala moved into the Heat starting lineup.

From there, early foul trouble for Robinson and Ariza had Max Strus and KZ Okpala in the mix early.

With Herro and Oladipo still out, it magnified the Heat’s bypassing the option of adding a 15th player to their standard roster, now more than two weeks into the period when such a move would not put them into the luxury tax.

“We’ve got to do a better job collectively when players like that are out,” Ariza said.

Spoelstra said the two-day break before Friday’s home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves comes at the right time.

“We feel very fortunate that we do have two days,” he said. “A lot of our guys can use that.”

2. Missing the point: In the absences of Butler, Oladipo and Herro, Adebayo again filled out the box score, but struggled to play as a lead man.

He attempted only 10 shots, with four teammates, even in the absences of Butler, Herro and Oladipo, attempting more.

It wasn’t until 8:02 remained that Adebayo scored on a driving layup to make it 51 consecutive games scoring in double figures, extending his career-best streak.

“He can do whatever you need,” Spoelstra said. “I just think the wind got knocked out of our sails by how well Dallas was playing.

“We didn’t execute offensively with real trust and precision and purpose.”

3. Luka and friend: Doncic was up to 19 points and eight rebounds by halftime.

While Ariza opened defensively on Doncic, the Heat cycled through a variety of defenders, with Adebayo often switching onto Doncic, leaving the Heat without deterrence at the rim.

Then, when Doncic cooled, Hardaway took over in the third period, joining George McCloud and Wesley Matthews as the only players in Mavericks history to convert 10 3-pointers in a game.

“He’s probably as familiar with this floor and these rims and this arena probably as well as anybody,” Spoelstra said of Hardaway.

A key difference in the game was Doncic constantly commanded a double-team, with Butler not there to do the same for the Heat.

4. Early offense: With Ariza scoring 16 in the highest-scoring first quarter by a Heat player this season, the Heat jumped to a 14-3 lead and ended the opening period up 39-30.

Ariza closed the first period 6 of 7 from the field and 4 of 5 on 3-pointers, before being forced to the bench with his second foul with 2:51 left in the quarter.

It was the seventh time in his career Ariza scored at least 16 points in a quarter, the first time since Jan. 25, 2016, for the Houston Rockets against the New Orleans Pelicans.

The Heat shot 8 of 9 from behind the arc over the opening 12 minutes, going on to finish 18 of 41 on 3-pointers.

Ultimately, though, Ariza said it came down to the Heat’s defensive failings, on a night Dallas was 22 of 48 from beyond the arc.

“They picked us apart,” Ariza said.

5. Mark made: Robinson’s third 3-pointer gave him 228 for the season, passing Wayne Ellington (2018) for the second-highest single-season total in the Heat’s 33 seasons. The record is Robinson’s 270 in 2019-20.

Also, Robinson’s third 3-point attempt was the 1,200th of his career.

He closed 4 of 11 from beyond the arc.

“We got a little disorganized,” Robinson said of the Heat’s shooting and offense falling off after the first quarter. “I don’t think we were quite as sharp.”