1. The story of the game is not the game, it’s that Jimmy Butler was carried off the floor with a few minutes left in the third quarter with an apparent right ankle injury. While we await word on the extent of it, it’s clear that the potential repercussions of a simple back-down move are far more important than the events of January 3.
Before Butler (22 points) was removed, he and Lowry (11 assists) were putting together a tour de force performance of random offense. Golden State’s switching defense and smart defenders – so many cutting and lob lanes has a hand or two in them, as Miami posted X turnovers – took the HEAT out of their typical flow, so the pair of All-Star vets manufactured on the fly, making quick read-and-react passes and attacking mismatches with what almost approached a postseason diet.