Head coach Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 119-108 without Jimmy Butler in the fourth quarter. The looming question for most fans was why? Tyler Herro led the Heat with a team-high 32 points on 11-of-22 shooting, which led to Bam Adebayo’s ringing All-Star nod endorsement postgame. However, it didn’t explain why Butler didn’t see the floor in the final frame.
For that, Spoelstra had an explanation, per ClutchPoint’s Zach Weinberger.
“I wasn’t even thinking about it as a back-to-back,” Spoelstra said. “13 days is a long time away, and I just went with the group there in the fourth. Most to see if that group could close that out.”
Butler scored nine points on 3-for-5 shooting, four rebounds, and a pair of assists in 25 minutes. Bam Adebayo recorded a double-double (23 points, 10 rebounds), Duncan Robinson finished with 17 points, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. led the bench with 12 points. Trey Murphy III scored a game-high 34 points for the Pelicans. CJ McCollum finished with 22 points and five assists.
After the Heat won, a reporter asked Adebayo if the chances of Herro reaching his first All-Star Game nod were inevitable.
“Facts,” Adebayo said. “You get that energy when you see a guy really just performing at a high level every night. You don’t take that for granted. A lot of times when we have low-energy games, you think about, ‘We got a guy really competing to try to be in San Fran,’ so for us, it’s going to be fun. I hope he gets it.”
Herro’s 32-point performance marked the third consecutive game in which he’d reached 27+ points. He’s averaging 24.3 points at a career-best 47.7% shooting, 5.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists this season.
Is Jimmy Butler secretly still on the trade block for the Heat?

While some fans speculate that Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is adapting to a potential future without Jimmy Butler, others will see it as a basketball decision predicated on the Heat capturing its fourth win in five tries. Despite Heat GM Pat Riley stating he’s not trading Butler, many speculate it is possible for the right asking price.
Butler missed five consecutive games before Wednesday’s win against the Pelicans. Dealing with a knee injury and a recent illness, Butler’s return signals he’s on the up and up between now and February 6’s NBA trade deadline. Only time will tell if he’ll remain with the team to finish the 2024-25 campaign between now and then.