MIAMI _ The first two ovations of the night belonged to Jimmy Butler, as the final player introduced, then after scoring the Miami Heat's first basket.
From there, his teammates earned their own applause, Tyler Herro, Goran Dragic, Kendrick Nunn and Bam Adebayo all with their moments in a 112-97 victory Tuesday night over the Atlanta Hawks at AmericanAirlines Arena.
For the Heat, it was a night of net gain, with Butler back after missing the season's first three games on paternity leave. For the Hawks, a night of net loss, with emerging guard Trae Young sidelined for the night in the second quarter with a sprained right ankle, leaving his status in doubt for Thursday's nationally televised rematch in Atlanta.
Now 3-1, the Heat picked up where they left off, as Butler rejoined the mix, closing with 21 points and five rebounds, supported by 29 points from Herro, 21 from Dragic, 17 from Nunn and 17 points and 10 rebounds from Adebayo, who closed 9 of 10 from the line.
Herro, who shot 7 of 9 from the field and 12 of 16 from the line, broke the Heat record for points off the bench by a rookie, which previously was 28 by Michael Beasley against the Suns on March 4, 2009.
Forward John Collins led the Hawks with 30 points, shooting 5 of 6 on 3-pointers.
Catching the Hawks on the second night of a back-to-back after a Monday loss in Atlanta to the Philadelphia 76ers, the Heat pushed to a double-digit lead in the second period and never looked back, the challenge eased once the need for double-teams against Young was alleviated.
