An update on the status of Heat wings Butler and Dragic. And Nunn, Adebayo work way back

The Miami Heat will be without Jimmy Butler for a third consecutive game Saturday against Phoenix, while Goran Dragic is getting closer to a return from an ankle injury.

Erik Spoelstra said on Friday that there was “no change” in the status of Butler, who has missed two games with what the team is now officially listing as foot soreness. A source said it’s primarily the ankle that is bothering him.

An MRI and X-ray revealed no structural damage, and Spoelstra has said rest remains the best treatment and has offered no timetable for his return.

Butler’s agent, Bernie Lee, told The Miami Herald on Friday: “Jimmy had his final scan yesterday. And we understand what he’s dealing with. And he’s working his butt off to get back on the floor ASAP and to be ready for the playoffs.”

With Butler missing Thursday’s loss against Milwaukee, Miami is now 6-7 without him this season.

Butler, 30, played in Miami’s first two seeding games at Disney, averaging 19 points, 5.5 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 31.6 minutes. The five-time All-Star is averaging team-highs in points (20.2), assists (6.1) and steals (1.7) in his first season with the Heat.

Butler remains with the team and attended a Friday practice that did not involve heavy court work.

Meanwhile, Dragic revealed that he was “a little bit concerned” after falling awkwardly on his left ankle late in Tuesday’s win against Boston and that the injury was painful. “When I walked it off, I felt better,” he said.

Dragic, who sat out Thursday’s loss to Milwaukee, said he started shooting on Friday but the ankle is still a bit sore.

Even so, he said he wanted to work out again on Friday night before determining his status for Saturday. “I’m not sure yet [about the Phoenix game],” he said.

NUNN’S STRUGGLES

Guard Kendrick Nunn — who’s averaging 15.2 points in his rookie season — has hit a rough patch, shooting 7 for 30 overall and 4 for 18 on threes in the Heat’s past three games. And we learned Friday night that Nunn has left the NBA bubble but is expected back soon.

What’s more, he has five turnovers and four assists in those games and Miami has been outscored by 27 points with Nunn on the court in that stretch.

Nunn logged 29 minutes against Milwaukee, with the Heat playing without Butler and Dragic. But Nunn was used for just 16 and 15 minutes the previous two games — well below his 29.2 average for the season.

But Spoelstra gave no indication that he would remove Nunn from the starting lineup. Nunn has started all 66 of his appearances this season.

But since the NBA’s restart, Heat rookie backup guard Tyler Herro has played 101 minutes compared with Nunn’s 82.

Nunn “needs more time very similar to Bam [Adebayo],” Spoelstra said of two players who indicated they had recovered from COVID-19. “I’m not making any excuses for either one. When you miss that kind of time, it takes guys a different amount of five on five and games and practices to regain your rhythm. He was playing really good basketball a couple weeks before that [NBA shut-down due to COVID-19]. I loved the rhythm he was in then. I’m confident he will get that back quickly.

“We need him because he provides something that is different. When he’s in rhythm, he’s a weapon that really adds to our diversity.”

And in Nunn’s defense, he hit 4 of 10 threes against Milwaukee, though he shot 5 for 17 overall.

And with his 14 points, he became the first undrafted rookie in NBA history to reach 1,000 points in his first season since the start of the Common Draft Era in 1966. He has 1001 points for the season.

▪ Adebayo has said he had no COVID symptoms when he tested positive for the disease weeks ago. But in terms of returning to basketball, he admitted Friday: “Mentally I feel like I’m ready. Physically my body says otherwise sometimes.”

▪ The Heat, which typically permits 22 points per game in the paint, allowed 44 against Milwaukee.

And consider this: Whereas the Heat shot 9 of 18 inside the restricted area on Thursday, the Bucks made 16 of 19 shots (84.2 percent) from that zone.

It didn’t help that Adebayo was limited to 22 minutes by foul trouble.

“He’s so important for us,” Duncan Robinson said. “It’s such a physical game when we play those guys, a lot of those calls could have gone either way. It’s frustrating because he does so much for us. Particularly, when he’s himself and able to be himself defensively and be physical and be who he is, that’s when we’re at our best. Definitely frustrating. When we go through stretches when we don’t have him on the floor, we have to learn how to adjust.”

With Hassan Whiteside having been traded last summer to create cap space to sign Butler, the Heat ranks just 23rd in the league in blocks per game at 4.4, worst in the Eastern Conference and second-worst overall among teams in playoff position.

What’s more, teams are shooting 64.2 percent against the Heat from within five feet of the basket, which is fourth worst in the league from a defensive standpoint.

But Miami is better defensively a bit further away from the basket. Opponents are shooting 38.7 percent from five to nine feet, which is eighth best in the league from a defensive perspective.

▪ The Heat emerged from Thursday’s late-game meltdown disturbed that it allowed its focus to be impacted by its reaction to questionable officiating calls

“We were worrying about the refs too much, the calls they were making,” Herro said. “Our lack of focus kind of showed in that second half.”

Robinson said: “We had stretches definitely to start the third, moment in the fourth, where we were just worrying about the wrong things, the shots or whatever, instead of locking in on the defensive end and letting that translate into our offense. So we’ve got to learn from this one. If we don’t, then we’re foolish.”

▪ Center Meyers Leonard has gone from starting every game in which he appeared for the Heat before his early-February ankle injury to not appearing in any of the four games at Disney.

“These are tough decisions,” Spoelstra said. “In a perfect world, I wanted to go with that lineup [with Leonard starting]. That was one of the most successful lineups all season long. We’re in a global pandemic. Nothing is normal. I had to treat that situation with an open mind. I don’t love having to make those decisions. Meyers is not only just a great team guy. He’s all about team dynamics. He’s selfless. And more importantly, he helps us win. I’m open to change if necessary. He’s on my mind every day.”

▪ The Phoenix Suns, who entered the bubble at 26-39, are 4-0 in Disney and entered Friday just two games behind No. 8 Memphis.