With 10:03 left and the Miami Heat trailing by eight, Erik Spoelstra had no choice but to summon Jimmy Butler from his place in the second row of the Heat’s bench at AmericanAirlines Arena. Miami had outscored the New York Knicks by 15 points whenever Butler was the floor Tuesday and whenever he retreated for the sidelines for a breather he watched the Knicks erase the Heat’s lead or build its own.
With a seven-game road trip and the threat of dropping six games below .500 looming, Miami asked Butler to rescue it. The Heat scored six straight after Butler reentered and rallied to win 98-96 in Miami after closing the game on a 22-12 run.
Butler finished with 26 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists, two blocks and one steal -- including five points, three rebounds and four assists in the fourth quarter -- to help the Heat (10-14) win again for its first three-game winning streak of the season. The win moves Miami up to 10th place in the Eastern Conference, just 1 1/2 games behind the eighth-place Toronto Raptors.
The final push was the second time Butler had to rally the Heat after a Knicks run. Miami opened up an 11-point lead in the first quarter before unraveling in the second quarter when Butler and Kelly Olynyk went to the bench. New York (11-15) ripped off a 15-0 run with the two forwards on the sideline and Miami’s 30-27 lead flipped into a 40-30 deficit. Spoelstra called timeout after a 3:07 scoring drought, and ushered Butler and Olynyk back into the game.
With Butler and Olynyk back in, the Heat answered with 11 straight. Guard Kendrick Nunn hit two three-pointers and Olynyk hit one off an assist from Butler. Twice more in the quarter the All-Star found Olynyk for threes and Miami took a 57-55 lead into halftime, outscoring the Knicks by 22 when Butler and Olynyk were on the floor.
Olynyk, who only scored three points in the second half, finished with 20 points and went 5 of 6 from three-point range in the first half.
For most of the second half, Butler was still the entirety of the offense. He scored 13 of the Heat’s first 17 points in the third quarter as New York took 75-72 lead before Butler went to the bench for a quick rest. He stayed there for just 4:26 of game action, and returned to the court with Miami down 84-76 as he and Adebayo were the only two to score in the third quarter.
With 1:04 left, the Heat and Knicks were still knotted at 94-94, and Butler orchestrated the offense from the right wing. From the other side of the floor, Tyler Herro charged around a screen and Butler fired him a pass at the three-point line. The combo guard loaded up and drilled a go-ahead three to give Miami a 97-94 lead.
In the final seconds, New York had a last chance to win. Adebayo forced Julius Randle to miss a fadeaway and then the star post player ran over Butler as they chased a loose ball. Butler rolled around the floor, fighting off a smile and looking over as his shoulder as he tried in vain to sell a flagrant foul, then went to the free-throw line and hit a free throw. The Knicks’ final shot wouldn’t go down as New York wing R.J. Barrett couldn’t finish a layup against Butler. Miami hung on.
