Bad nights happen in the NBA, and Wednesday night was no exception for the Miami Heat. Despite taking on a Cleveland Cavaliers squad that was resting a good chunk of its starters, the Heat let the 4th quarter slip away en route to a 130-116 loss to fall to 7-5 on the season.
All things considered, given the injuries Miami has and the setup of their early-season schedule, being 7-5 through 12 games is probably a success story for the Heat.
But if Miami really wanted to change what their long-term outlook looks like for 2025-26, they would want a do-over on five really bad minutes from Wednesday night.
Miami falls to shorthanded Cleveland
As Wednesday night progressed, one got the feeling that the Heat's offensive firepower would eventually win out and that Cleveland would simply run out of gas, given who was available for them.
So even after the Heat had taken double-digit leads in the first and third quarters that both slipped away, it was still a 101-100 game with 8:55 left, and the Heat were slated to rotate in all their starters to close out the game.
This is where Miami could have taken a step forward to put away a Cavaliers squad that was offering more resistance than one might have anticipated.
Fast forward five minutes, and the Heat found themselves down by 10 after Kel'el Ware hit a layup with 3:41 left.
During that five-minute stretch, Jaime Jaquez Jr. missed two layups, Pelle Larsson had a turnover, Norman Powell had a turnover, and Jaquez Jr. had a turnover.
Add in Cleveland, collecting three offensive rebounds along with Miami committing three fouls during these five minutes, and the end result was a final push that never got out of 1st gear.
One step forward, one step back
The disappointing part is that this loss comes on the heels of Miami doing everything right on Monday night in a game that elevated the Heat into top-four contention in the East.
And while the starters didn't make a final push to close out the game, we would be remiss if we didn't highlight the awful night Nikola Jović had.
Two points, four turnovers, and a plus/minus of -16 in 22:03 of action. After having three straight solid games, Jović reverted to the early-season disappointment that defined his first eight games of the 2025-26 campaign.
If someone wants to go glass-half-full, this team is still 7-5 despite missing its two best players, and they did stare down this same Cleveland squad on Monday night when the Cavaliers were at full strength.
But to take a step forward in the 2026 playoffs, Miami is going to have to showcase better consistency than what it showcased on Wednesday.