In a battle of short-handed rosters, the Los Angeles Clippers came out on top.
With both sides missing a few of its best players, Thursday’s result wasn’t the most indicative of where the Miami Heat and Clippers stand. But it was a painful one for the Heat.
The Heat dropped its fifth straight game in a 109-105 loss to the Clippers (14-5) on Thursday at AmericanAirlines Arena. Miami, which represented the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals last season, is 6-12 to begin the season.
But the Heat did not go away quietly.
With the Clippers ahead by nine points with 47.1 seconds to play, the Heat cut the deficit to three with 20.1 seconds left. But Miami missed its final three shots of the game as Los Angeles held on.
The Heat is 0-2 to begin its six-game homestand, with a Saturday night matchup against Sacramento Kings up next.
Here are five takeaways from the Heat’s loss to the Clippers:
The day started with encouraging Heat news, as Jimmy Butler was upgraded to questionable for the first time since he went out more than two weeks ago. But in the end, the Heat fielded a depleted roster once again.
Not only was Butler (health and safety protocols) out Thursday, but so was Avery Bradley (right knee contusion) Goran Dragic (left groin strain), Moe Harkless (left thigh contusion), Andre Iguodala (neck spasms), Meyers Leonard (left shoulder strain) and Chris Silva (left hip flexor strain).
The Heat entered its matchup against the Clippers with just 10 available players.
But Butler, who missed his 10th straight game Thursday, is expected to make his return soon.
There’s optimism that Butler will be able to return for Saturday’s home game against the Sacramento Kings, according to a league source. The five-time All-Star has not played since the Heat’s Jan. 9 road win over the Washington Wizards.
Butler, 31, has played in just six of the Heat’s first 17 games, as he also missed two of the first four games of the season because of a sprained right ankle. Butler, in casual clothes, watched Thursday’s game from the Heat’s bench alongside teammates for the second consecutive night.
As for Bradley and Iguodala, their injuries are new after both played in Wednesday’s loss to the Nuggets.
Bradley missed Thursday’s game after returning to play Wednesday following an eight-game absence stemming from a COVID-19 diagnosis.
“It happened to be one of these situations, probably three minutes into his first stint, he collided and hit his knee and leg,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of Bradley. “It’s just the way it has been going, but it’s not too serious.”
Iguodala, who turned 37 on Thursday, was a late scratch because of a stiff neck.
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Heat guard Tyler Herro was able to return from injury after missing the past seven games with neck spasms. But Herro wasn’t able to find his rhythm until late in the game, and Bam Adebayo was not his usual efficient self.
Herro was rusty early in his return before finding his rhythm late to finish with 19 points 8-of-21 shooting, 10 rebounds and five assists in 32 minutes. He scored 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting in the fourth quarter.
Adebayo, who entered averaging 20.3 points on 59.7 percent shooting, finished with 16 points on 6-of-16 shooting but also recorded 13 rebounds and seven assists.
Thursday was the continuation of a rough offensive patch for the Heat, which entered shooting an inefficient 41.2 percent from the field and 26.7 percent on threes in its past four games.
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The Clippers were also without a few of their most important players, but they made enough three-pointers to make up for it.
The Clippers’ superstar duo of Paul George and Kawhi Leonard were not with the team and did not play Thursday against the Heat because of the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Guard Patrick Beverley (right knee soreness) also missed the contest.
Leonard (25.9 points per game) and George (23.9 points per game) are the Clippers’ top two scorers.
Without those two, Los Angeles was missing a big chunk of its offense. But the Clippers made up for it with 17-of-42 (40.5 percent) shooting on threes.
Veteran forward Nicolas Batum led the Clippers’ three-point push with 6-of-9 shooting from deep.
Los Angeles’ efficiency from deep negated its 42.2 percent shooting on two-point attempts.
With the Clippers earning a win over the Heat without George and Leonard on Thursday, it’s worth noting that Los Angeles has outscored opponents by 127 points with its two stars on the court together and has been outscored by 43 points when both are not playing this season.
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For the first time since the NBA suspended the 2019-20 season on March 11 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Heat hosted fans at AmericanAirlines Arena on Thursday.
The Heat opened the downtown Miami arena to host about 1,500 season-ticket holders — less than 10 percent of the building’s usual capacity — starting with Thursday’s matchup against the Clippers. COVID-19-sniffing dogs were used to screen fans, employees and others before entering, as the Heat became the first NBA team to try this approach.
Among the strict guidelines fans had to follow while inside AmericanAirlines Arena: All fans over the age of 2 had to wear a mask completely covering their mouth and noise while inside the arena unless consuming a drink in designated areas where it’s permitted. Also, drinks (soda and water only) were sold but could not be consumed in the arena bowl or concourses, and food was not available for purchase.
This Heat is currently planning to host a limited capacity at AmericanAirlines Arena for six consecutive upcoming home games — Thursday vs. Clippers, Saturday vs. Sacramento Kings, Monday vs. Charlotte Hornets, Wednesday vs. Washington Wizards, Feb. 5 vs. Wizards and Feb. 9 vs. New York Knicks.
The plan, depending on the course of the pandemic, is to eventually increase the amount of fans allowed to attend home games to about 3,000 by the end of February.
The Heat began allowing about 100 family members, and team and player guests attend home games in late December.
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Thursday also marked the return of former Heat assistant coach Dan Craig.
After spending 17 years with the Heat, Dan Craig moved on to become the Clippers’ associate head coach on Tyronn Lue’s staff.
Craig, 39, spent the past four seasons as a Heat assistant on Spoelstra’s staff after spending the 2015-16 season as the head coach of the organization’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Craig began his Heat career as a video intern in 2003-04.
The Heat acknowledged Craig’s return on the AmericanAirlines Arena video screen during a timeout in the first quarter.
“We’re like brothers in this profession,” Spoelstra said of Craig before Thursday’s game. “It will be weird to see him tonight. We texted yesterday, and that’s just how strange this all is. We haven’t been able to see each other. He comes into Miami and he couldn’t even leave, like all of us, couldn’t leave the hotel.”
