To sum up this Miami Heat season that now is one game from its midpoint: Wonderfully unpredictable.
With Saturday one of those nights of wonderment.
Leaving the defending Western Conference champions bewildered.
Again shorthanded, with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo among those watching from the bench, the Heat took their game to the 3-point line Saturday night at the Footprint Center and won going away against the league-leading Phoenix Suns, 123-100.
A long and winding road trip that began with a Dec. 29 postponed game because the injured and ill Heat lacked sufficient bodies to play in San Antonio ended with a franchise-record-tying 22 3-point conversions.
Against a lineup loaded with talent, from Chris Paul to Devin Booker to Deandre Ayton, the Heat closed 22 of 44 from beyond the arc, to improve to 25-15, as the Suns fell to 30-9.
Whether it was Duncan Robinson shooting 8 of 16 on 3-pointers on his 27-point night, Tyler Herro offering 33 points off the bench, Kyle Lowry with a 14-point, 13-assist double-double or Omer Yurtseven loading up with 16 rebounds on a night he also had a career-high eight assists, the Heat hardly looked like a team with 11 players inactive.
“We just wanted to finish this trip strong,” Robinson said.
And now, a chance with an exhale, with three days off before the 41st game of their 82-game season on Wednesday night in Atlanta.
Five Degrees of Heat from Saturday’s game:
1. Closing time: The Heat led 71-50 at halftime, went up by 27 in the third period and took a 98-79 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Suns attempted one last run when they reinserted Booker with 10:30 to play, with a 16-2 run bridging periods bringing them with 100-87.
Robinson later hit a pair of 3-pointers to get the Heat lead back to 20, with Herro also helping to stabilize the offense.
The Suns finally pulled their starters with 4:46 remaining and the Heat up 118-93.
2. 3-for-all: The Heat set a franchise record for any half with their 15-of-30 3-point shooting in the first half.
That included 5 of 10 from Duncan Robinson.
Beyond Robinson, Caleb Martin, P.J. Tucker, Max Strus and Tyler Herro all hit multiple first-half 3-pointers.
The Heat’s previous high for a half had been 14. The NBA record for a half remains 18.
“We kind of got it going early,” Robinson said.
3. Assist machine: Yurtseven put together the most unique first half, going into the intermission scoreless on 0-for-2 shooting, but with nine rebounds and a career-high seven assists.
Yurtseven’s previous single-game high for assists was four.
The assists stopped, but the rebounds did not, with Yurtseven making it at least 12 rebounds in 11 consecutive games, extending his franchise record.
4. Changing of guards: For the second consecutive game, Strus started ahead of Robinson. It was Strus’ fifth start, but just the second with Robinson available.
It marked just the second time in the past two seasons Robinson played as a reserve. Prior to Wednesday night’s victory in Portland, the previous time Robinson had played as a reserve was Nov. 5, 2019.
5. Long, winding road: Saturday’s game completed a trip that began with the Dec. 29 postponed game in San Antonio. The trip technically is not over, with the Heat next playing Wednesday in Atlanta, but the Heat is returning to South Florida in the interim.
“This road trip has been really unique,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “When you rewind it and think about when we flew into San Antonio, that feels like two months ago. I mean that feels like two months ago.
“We had to remind ourselves this morning in our staff meeting, that was the beginning of this trip, and how many things have changed, how many guys were in and out, with the team, and not with the team, guys going to Miami, other guys coming back and joining us. All of it has been extremely unique, but we’ve had some really enjoyable nights and experiences together.”
