Jimmy Butler was back, and back making a difference, Friday night for the Heat. (Michael Dwyer, AP)
It might not have been the first time Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has utilized the phrase, but it apparently is now part of the team’s vernacular.
“Our big four,” he said, “they were tremendous.”
That they were in Friday night’s 120-116 overtime victory over the Boston Celtics at TD Garden, in the third stop of this four-game trip that concludes Monday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
There were 28 points from center Bam Adebayo, 26 from guard Tyler Herro, 20 from guard Kyle Lowry and 25 points and 15 rebounds from forward Jimmy Butler in his return from a seven-game absence due to knee pain.
“At different stages of the game,” Spoelstra said, “I felt like they all were able to put their imprint on the game offensively. They weren’t in each other’s way.”
That alone, even beyond the perseverance required, arguably made Friday’s victory one of the most significant — if not the most significant — of the season.
While Lowry, Adebayo and Herro had put together some of their best performances in Butler’s absence, the unknown was whether the four could get it done as a starting quartet. That even was a concern before the season, with Herro shifting from his sixth-man role.
Friday, there was a Big Four that coalesced against the hottest team in the NBA. It was the first time the four had played together since Nov. 1.
“I think it’ll be good,” Adebayo said of this restart. “We’ll be in a fluid rotation, so Coach doesn’t have to mishmash and make this work with this. I feel like we’ll have a good stretch where we’ll be putting together a lot of wins and having our full team.”
In the previous three games in Butler’s absence, Adebayo attempted at least 19 shots in each game; Friday, there were an ample 18. With Butler out, Herro had lifted his contributions; Friday there were six 3-pointers. And when Butler was sidelined, Lowry loaded up on minutes far greater than expected for a 36 year old; Friday, he went 38:39, within 18 seconds of Herro for team high.
“I don’t think it’s that hard when you got guys that are gaining confidence whenever I’m out,” Butler said. “And then they continually play the same way whenever I’m back, my job gets really, really, really simple then.
“They’re comfortable. They’re confident. And they’re a big reason that we’ve been winning as of late. And now that I’m back, I just want it to stay the same, keep it consistent, because that’s what’s been winning games for us.”
Lowry said it was clear that Friday’s moment was meaningful for Butler.
“He’s been itching to get back,” Lowry said. “He was nervous with his knee. And fortunately he didn’t have to do anything but to rest and rehab and recover.”
So now, a goal of leaving the worst behind and moving back to .500 by making it a 3-1 trip with a Monday victory in Memphis.
“We’re now in December, so we can kind of start piecing things together,” Lowry said. “We went through hopefully our stretch of unfortunate luck with injuries. Hopefully. that’s done for us and we can continue to build.”
So let the four play begin for the big four.
With Butler’s presence Friday providing the ultimate lift.
“He plays the game the right way,” Spoelstra said. “He competes the right way. He’s not barking at his coach, ‘I need a play call,’ ‘I need the ball,’ ‘Give me this amount of shots.’ He’s never saying anything like that. He’s just competing and playing the game, trying to help your team win. And he competes on both ends.”
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Originally published at Tribune News Service