It wasn't a pretty sight as the Miami Heat suffered an ugly loss by the hands of the Boston Celtics Thursday night, 143-110. It marks their fifth straight already coming off of a brutal outing to the depleted Memphis Grizzlies the night before.
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra spoke to the media after the game and was candid in his time as he said “it was a humbling night.” He would go on to credit the Celtics saying that they are the No. 1 team in the Eastern Conference for a reason as they lit it up shooting 63.7 percent from the field and 55 percent from three-point range.
“It was a humbling night, that's for sure. They put us in our place tonight and you do have to respect the body of work that they've done so far in the season,” Spoelstra said. “They're the number one team in the league with that record and they are doing it on both ends of the court, they have top two or three offense and defense, they don't miss many moments offensively. If somebody is open, they make you pay for that. They do obviously have that three point explosiveness, but they also have other things that they can put pressure on you.”
Spoelstra talks about how quickly it got out of hand for Heat
It's no secret that the Heat have been in a slump that has resulted in them arguably playing their worst basketball of the season so far. However, up until the final period, it wasn't a bad offensive night for Miami, but when you face a team like Boston, there is very little to no room for error as Spoelstra was saying after the beatdown.
“You have to really be intentional and disciplined and intelligent offensively over and over and over because of that firepower,” Spoelstra said. “If you're not getting the right kind of shots, then that's going the other way and then a 10 point lead can go in 20 pretty quickly. So it was a humbling night. That's the standard. We understand what that is, what the top record in the East looks like and we have some work to do. And that's what we'll do.”
Jimmy Butler reveals what he wants to see from Miami in losing streak
Star Jimmy Butler finished the game with 17 points, four assists, and three rebounds in what was another down performance from him and the rest of the team. He said to the media in the locker room that before the Heat can think about getting wins, the attitude has to be joyous first, even in times of defeat.
“Nobody want to lose, especially five games in a row. But, before you can even start thinking about winning, just feel like everybody gotta get back to having fun again,” Butler said. “Yes, losing is not fun, winning is. But if we ain't playing with some high energy, smiling and all that good stuff, it can get a lot worse.”
Spoelstra said it after the loss to the Grizzlies Wednesday that a “breakthrough” is in the horizon. When Butler was asked if he sees one, he said to ClutchPoints that the whole team should feel that way.
“We better feel that way. I mean, you gotta win sooner or later right? That's the way I'm looking at it,” Butler said. “But we gotta start doing things the right way on both sides of the ball and the time is going to come, I know that.”
It doesn't get any easier for the Heat as they now travel to take on another Eastern Conference rival in the New York Knicks, who have won five straight after beating the defending champions in the Denver Nuggets Thursday. Miami's record now sits at 24-21 as they inch closer to .500.
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