MIAMI – The Miami Heat beat the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night, 114-104, as their winning streak has extended to four games, amplified not by the trade rumors surrounding Jimmy Butler but by the performance of forward Nikola Jovic. The Heat's young star would get reactions from Butler and head coach Erik Spoelstra but also received praise from Bam Adebayo.
Jovic, at one point, started in the front court alongside Adebayo to end last season and begin the current campaign but was relegated to the bench after a slow opening. The Serbian-born player had fallen out of the rotation and was vital in the win over Toronto, as Adebayo expressed, Jovic “handled it professionally”
“I think he handled it professionally,” Adebayo said on Jovic. “He does the little things behind the scenes. He’s always in pre-practice, he’s always trying to get better, and tonight, he probably didn’t think he was getting into the game. Then Spo threw him out there. We always got that saying, stay ready so you don’t got to get ready, and he was ready tonight.”
Bam Adebayo on Nikola Jovic being a spark for the Heat tonight after falling out of the rotation.
“I think he handled it [like a] professional…” #HeatNation pic.twitter.com/qvm9q0dN0u— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) December 13, 2024
On the night, Jovic came off the bench and scored 14 points on four of five shooting from the field, two of two from deep, while also collecting four rebounds and having a +25 on the floor. It would be a sluggish start for Miami in the game, but it was Jovic who came in and brought an “important spark,” as Spoelstra told ClutchPoints after the game, where the game turned around in their favor.
Heat's Nikola Jovic candid about getting back into the rotation
It was some much-needed confidence for Jovic as he had not played in a game since Nov. 23 against the Dallas Mavericks, where he had been working behind the scenes to get himself back into the rotation. Jovic would be honest after the outing and said it was a hard process of falling out of the rotation and getting back in.
“It was not easy,” Jovic said. “I kind of fell out of the rotation. I don’t know how many times something like this happened. It’s nothing new for me. Like I said before, I just keep moving keep practicing, and that’s what I do as I wait for my opportunity. It looks like it’s not the first and for sure not the last time something like this happens.”
Heat's Jimmy Butler shares endorsement for Nikola Jovic
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The team desperately needed a victory coming off a hectic past few days with the organization surrounded by trade speculation about Butler. They just got that with the crucial help of Jovic, as Butler himself would say to ClutchPoints that he is a “big fan” of the 21-year-old who was selected with the 27th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
“My man played like a starting four out there, that's what I like to see!” Butler said. “I'm a huge fan of Niko [Jovic]. I think everybody in the world knows it, everybody in Serbia knows it. I'm just happy for him. I want him to continue to play confidently. You know, he does everything well out there on the floor when he is locked in. I think he's back to being that. So I want my boy to keep shining and keep doing what he's doing.”
Miami is now 13-10, which puts them fifth in the Eastern Conference as they look for five straight wins when they face the Detroit Pistons on the road on Monday.
