To a degree, this was scripted, with Kyle Lowry given a heartfelt pregame tribute in his return to Scotiabank Arena, and with the Miami Heat playing it safe on the second night of their back-to-back set by holding out Jimmy Butler, P.J. Tucker, Dewayne Dedmon and Gabe Vincent.
And yet there is no way Sunday night’s 114-109 victory over the Toronto Raptors could have been scripted to this degree.
With Victor Oladipo (yes, Victor Oladipo) to the rescue.
With Markieff Morris offering quality minutes as a starter.
With Omer Yurtseven scoring six consecutive points at the start of the fourth quarter.
All with assistant coach Chris Quinn guiding the team, with coach Erik Spoelstra entering NBA health-and-safety protocols earlier in the day.
“It was great, and it was kind of typical of our season,” Quinn said of the unexpected producing a victory.
About the only element lacking shock value as the Heat extended their winning streak to four was Lowry making the most of his night and Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro offering their typical consistency.
Oladipo, in his best performance as a member of the Heat, closed with 21 points, tying his career high with six 3-pointers.
“It was amazing to see what he did,” Quinn said.
Morris did his part with 10 points, four assists, three rebounds and three steals.
And Max Strus solidified his new starting role, closing with 23 points, converting seven 3-pointers.
“It’s been like that all year,” Strus said of the Heat again turning adversity into advantage. “It seems like evert time this happens, somebody steps up at this time of a year.”
From the expected part of the equation, Lowry finished with 16 points, 10 assists and six rebounds; Herro with 18 points, eight assists and nine rebounds; and Adebayo with 16 points and nine rebounds.
Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam paced the Raptors with 29 points apiece.
Five Degrees of Heat from Sunday’s game:
1. Closing time: The Heat fell behind by 13 early, were down 34-28 at the end of the first quarter, 55-45 at halftime and but then led 79-78 going into the fourth quarter.
Then, midway through the final period, consecutive 3-pointers from Strus and Lowry moved the Heat to a 93-91 lead.
From there, Oladipo drained a pair of 3-pointers to push the Heat to a 107-97 lead with 2:22 to play, one of the conversions coming practically from the logo.
“True professional, true professional,” Lowry said. “I’m so proud of Vic.”
It then got dicey, when Adebayo was called for an away-from-the-ball foul with 33.7 seconds to play, but Toronto only scored a single point on what could have been up to a four-point possession.
But a three-shot foul by Herro with 27.2 seconds left allowed Toronto to move within 112-107.
The Heat held on from there.
2. Playoff picture: The victory moved the Heat to 51-28, two games ahead of the Boston
(49-30) atop the Eastern Conference, with the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers tied for third at 48-30.
The Heat will secure the top seed if they win two of their final three games (home games on Tuesday and Friday against the Charlotte Hornets and Atlanta Hawks, respectively, and then their April 10 season finale on the road against the Orlando Magic).
Based on other results, it is possible the Heat wrap up the conference before they take the court for Friday’s game against the Hawks.
“We don’t really pay attention to that,” Strus said of seeding. “We don’t talk about that too much. All we care about is winning games.”
3. Lowry’s night: After nine seasons with the Raptors and then missing the teams’ first three matchups, Lowry made an emotional return that including a two-minute standing ovation after a pregame tribute video.
Lowry waved back to the adoring crowd from midcourt, with his two sons at his side.
“I miss everything about the city, the country, the organization. There’s a lot to miss,” Lowry said on a day Toronto’s mayor declared Kyle Lowry Day. “There’s a lot of things to miss. My kids grew up here.
“It’s not my home building anymore, but it’s a place I’ll always call home.”
Quinn said Lowry kept joking that he didn’t want to cry.
“It was just amazing to be a part of that,” Quinn said. “You could see the impact of a winner, the impact of a champion, and the impact he had on a lot of people in this city.”
4. No Spo: The Heat were required to undergo a round of coronavirus testing earlier in the day, a requirement for re-entry back in the United States.
Shortly thereafter, Spoelstra entered NBA health-and-safety protocols.
Under NBA guidelines, Spoelstra faces a mandatory five days away from the team unless he otherwise can provide negative tests. A five-day timetable would have him out until the Heat close out their regular-season schedule next Sunday in Orlando (with that game time on Sunday set at 7 p.m.).
The victory was the first in the four games Spoelstra has missed during his Heat tenure that dates to the start of the 2008-09 season.
“It felt great,” Quinn said. “Obviously moving over a chair for a game, that’s a lot of pressure.”
5. Stepping up: After a scoreless first half, Strus stepped up with 14 third-quarter points, sparking the Heat with four 3-pointers. The Heat outscored the Raptors 34-23 in the third.
Strus then drained another pair in the fourth.
His sixth 3-pointer tied Damon Jones for 25th on the Heat’s all-time list.
“I just got opens looks and made ‘em,” Strus said. “It’s as simple as that.”
Then there was Oladipo, who made it a 3-point tag team, playing as part of a four-guard alignment at the close.
“He fits the mold of who we are here in Miami,” Strus said of Oladipo.
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