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Jimmy Butler fueling Heat’s latest power play in Erik Spoelstra’s rotation remix

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The Miami Heat’s approach to depth at power forward has taken a decidedly unique turn. Then again, perhaps that was to be expected, considering coach Erik Spoelstra refuses to acknowledge he even utilizes a power forward.

As part of the Heat’s rotation remix that had them on a three-game winning streak going into Sunday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena, Butler has been playing as the de facto backup power forward as part of Spoelstra’s move to greater spacing and shooting with his lineups.

That has shuffled Markieff Morris out of the primary mix and raised question about what will come next for Caleb Martin in his return from his calf injury.

“I’m comfortable with whatever position, quote, unquote, he puts me out there, with the individuals that I’m out there with,” Butler said, with Sunday’s game ending a three-game trip, before the Heat return for their final two home regular-season games. “We just play good basketball, play the right way.”

Whatever the positional designation for Butler’s secondary role, after he opens at small forward alongside Bam Adebayo and P.J. Tucker, Spoelstra refuses to attach a label.

“It’s really hard for me to have that conversation with these antiquated labels, because I don’t see the game that way,” Spoelstra said for the second time since reworking his rotation. “We don’t design our game that way. It really is position-less.

“And I know that whole term has become such a cliché. Jimmy’s guarded one through four all season long. And his offensive role hasn’t changed at all with some of these tweaks in the rotation.”

To Spoelstra, it is about getting the most productive five-man units together, leaving to the players from there to sort out the approach.

“So I think it’s a little bit kind of conventional to say, ‘OK, he’s a four or whatever,’ ” Spoelstra said. “But I think it’s more like: Where’s the ball going and what is our spacing? That would be it.”

In moving Max Strus into the starting lineup and removing Butler earlier in games than the previous approach, it has had Butler returning to play as the nominal power forward alongside Dewayne Dedmon with the second unit, surrounded by shooters, such as Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson, and space.

“If I had to sum it up, the last 10 days, that’s what we’ve really worked on,” Spoelstra said. “And then, when it’s going to Player A, it’s a little bit different when it’s Player B, Player C, Player D. And all these little nuances are different with your spacing and your actions and all the player movement. And that’s where we’ve tried to improve in that area.”

Spoelstra said a chameleon-like approach to the game has made the remix seamless to the skillset of Butler, who lately has even stepped up his 3-point game, including 2 of 3 from beyond the arc in Saturday night’s 127-109 victory over the Chicago Bulls at the United Center, when Butler closed with 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

“Jimmy’s versatility is supper unique, because of his size, his skill level, his athleticism and the fact that you can play him at anywhere on the floor,” Spoelstra said. “What we’re trying to do is just maximize that as much as we can, without labeling him at a position.”

Like Spoelstra, Butler said to put the positional designations aside, noting even that when cast at power forward, he still took the defensive assignment against Bulls wing DeMar DeRozan.

“I just hoop,” he said.

And then, a smile, as Butler noted how his latest outside success has particularly made him part of the remixed solution.

“I’m spacer,” he said. “I shoot threes.”

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