Keeping their feet on the gas
Heat power past Nets to end 3-game skid
NEW YORK — Erik Spoelstra stood outside the Miami Heat locker room early Wednesday evening insisting the sky wasn’t falling.
“We’re not as far away as it looks,” he said. “But that’s what losing does.”
Less than four hours later, Spoelstra did not have to talk about losing, but rather about resilience.
Getting contributions from just about every available player — yes, even Udonis Haslem — the Heat put together one of their better efforts of the season in a 120-107 victory over the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center.
Having made a habit of both building and blowing leads, the Heat stormed to an early 22-point advantage and played from the lead the entire night, with the Nets never leading.
Tyler Johnson led the Heat with 24 points, with Goran Dragic adding 21, Josh Richardson 15 and Hassan Whiteside 14.
Ultimately, the beauty was in the simplicity.
“We feel that we have enough experience to be able to close out these games better,” Spoelstra said going in. “For us, it’s a matter of simplifying, getting to our identity, defending the way we’re capable of.”
About the only moment of concern came midway through the fourth quarter, when the Nets trimmed what had grown to a 23-point deficit to 106-97 on a 3-pointer by former Heat first-round pick Shabazz Napier.
But Johnson then converted a pair of shots to make it academic.
Five degrees of Heat from Wednesday’s game:
1. Right opponent, right time: The Heat needed this one not only to snap a three-game losing streak, but to also prove they could play from ahead, having struggled in that situation against the Indiana Pacers, Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers.
This time, even when the early lead got down to seven, there was ample pushback.
There also was the benefit of the Nets being without Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen.
“Our guys understand how important it is for us to have that hard-hat, lunch-pail mentality,” Spoelstra said.
2. The big thing: If there was any question about the Heat carrying three minutes-worthy centers, it was answered in the first half, with Whiteside, Bam Adebayo and Kelly Olynyk all called for three fouls by the intermission.
Through it all, the Heat scored 40 points in the paint in the first half, their high for any half this season.
Spoelstra said he remained confident that the Heat could continue to play big when opponents went small, with the Nets having little option Wednesday.
“We’re more than capable and so is Hassan,” he said, although Whiteside did have to leave midway through the third period with his fourth foul.
The Heat’s length helped limit the Nets to 16-of-36 shooting at the rim through three quarters.
3. Pushing through: Less than a week ago, Dragic’s right knee was so swollen that he couldn’t straighten his leg.
But after two missed games and his first scoreless outing as a member of the Heat, he scored 22 Monday against the 76ers and then led a balanced attack Wednesday.
With Dion Waiters and Dwyane Wade away from the team, and with the Heat without Derrick Jones Jr. on Wednesday night due to illness, the Heat’s wing options were limited as Dragic again showed his passion to play.
4. Winslow’s way: The Justise Winslow experience often can be a thrill ride, with his high-energy assaults to the rim.
This time he committed the Heat’s first four turnovers, shot 2 for 8, but also paced the Heat on the boards.
As much as anything, this latest ride by Winslow as the starting power forward shows that James Johnson should get every opportunity to reclaim his starting job once he is all the way back from May hernia surgery.
5. Haslem time: Why, yes, that was Haslem who entered with 1:35 left in the first half, with Whiteside, Adebayo and Kelly Olynyk up to three fouls.
It was the second appearance of the season by the Heat tri-captain, who had played four minutes in the blowout home victory over the New York Knicks.
Haslem converted his second shot of the night, after missing his previous four attempts this season, a layup that helped stem a Nets surge from a 22-point deficit to within 56-49 before the conversion by the 16-year veteran. That helped the Heat move to a 61-49 halftime lead. He then returned late in the third period, when Whiteside was on the bench with four fouls and Adebayo with five.