MIAMI _ Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said his goal for Wednesday night's game against the Chicago Bulls was a complete performance.
Ultimately, after blowing a 15-point lead, it again came down to survival, which the Heat achieved. Barely.
Against an opponent coming off a 32-point loss, not even the return of center Hassan Whiteside could significantly ease the burden, the Heat having to fight to almost the finish before finishing off the Chicago Bulls, 97-91, at AmericanAirlines Arena.
In need of something big to shake themselves out of their doldrums _ and the three-game losing streak they carried into the night _ the Heat actually got that, with center Hassan Whiteside back after a five-game absence.
Whiteside, who fatigued after dominant play at the outset, closed with 13 points and 14 rebounds in 26 minutes, Spoelstra stressing going in that he was going to monitor the minutes of his big man.
It wasn't until Tyler Johnson drained a 3-pointer at the midpoint of the fourth quarter that the Heat again opened breathing room, moving to a 10-point lead.
And even then there was work to do, with Spoelstra deciding by that stage that Whiteside's night was over.
The Bulls closed within 89-82 with 59 seconds to play on a Justin Holiday 3-pointer and then 91-85 on a Jerian Grant 3-pointers with 24 seconds left.
Guard Goran Dragic led the Heat with 20 points, supported by 19 from Goran Dragic.
Rookie forward Lauri Markkanen led the Bulls with 25 points, supported by 22 from center Robin Lopez.
The Heat wound up with more of a lineup change than just the return of Whiteside, who had missed the previous five games with a bone bruise on his left knee, an injury sustained during the Oct. 18 season opener against the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center.
Shortly before tipoff that Heat announced that starting power forward James Johnson had tendinitis in his right knee and would be in uniform, but available only for emergency duty.
Rather than return Kelly Olynyk to starting lineup, which was the case alongside Whiteside in the opener, Spoelstra instead opted to start Okaro White at power forward.
The Heat's starting lineup was rounded out by Josh Richardson, Dion Waiters and Dragic, who had missed Tuesday's practice with the illness that previously had struck Tyler Johnson, James Johnson, Wayne Ellington and A.J. Hammons.
The Bulls were also shorthanded, with Nikola Mirotic and Bobby Portis both out from their training-camp melee, Mirotic due to a concussion and maxillary fractures, Portis due to his ongoing team suspension. The Bulls have yet to have Zach LaVine in uniform.
With Whiteside back, first-round pick Bam Adebayo, who had started the three previous games, did not see his first action until 1:05 remained in the third period, after Olynyk was called for his fifth foul.
Adebayo wound up adding a needed late spark.
The Heat fell behind in the third but were able to take a 67-64 lead into the fourth, sparked by seven third-quarter points from Tyler Johnson.
The Heat pushed to a 15-point second-period lead, only to see the Bulls tie it late in the quarter. The Heat then went into the intermission up only 49-47, despite 11 points and 12 rebounds over the opening two periods by Whiteside.
With the Bulls opening 2 of 14 from the field and Whiteside with seven points and nine rebounds in his opening 10-minute stint, the Heat moved to a 27-17 lead at the end of the first period. Whiteside converted a 3-pointer during that first quarter to move to 2 for 2 on the season and his career, having made one in the season opener.
The game concluded a season-longest six-game homestand, with the Heat next off to their season-longest six-game trip, which opens Friday against the Denver Nuggets.
It was the first game of the four-game season series, with the Bulls also to visit on March 29. The Bulls won last season's series 2-1, with the Heat entering 2-3 at home against Chicago over the previous three seasons.
The teams finished tied at 41-41 last season, with Chicago winning the No. 8 seed and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference playoffs by the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Bulls traded Jimmy Butler to the Timberwolves and released Dwyane Wade in the offseason.
The Bulls had been idle since Saturday's 101-69 home loss to the Thunder, when they shot just .282 from the field, outscored 24-8 in the second period of that game.
