In the third quarter of the Miami Heat’s Wednesday contest against the Golden State Warriors, Jimmy Butler and Udonis Haslem were seen getting into what appeared to be a heated argument.
After the game, head coach Erik Spoelstra explained what the supposed argument was about.
After playing the Warriors to a standstill in the first half, Miami gave up a 19-0 run to start the third period, which ultimately led to it losing 118-104.
Miami was without Tyler Herro, who has a sprained knee, but the Warriors didn’t have Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green or Otto Porter Jr., which makes this loss all the more frustrating.
The Heat still hold the top seed in the Eastern Conference, but the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers are breathing down their neck, looking to close the gap with the playoffs just a few weeks away.
In addition, the Boston Celtics have surged in recent weeks on the strength of one of the NBA’s best defenses, and they currently sit in third place in the East. The Heat will play them later this month in Massachusetts on national TV.
On Wednesday, Miami allowed Jordan Poole to go off for 30 points and seven 3-pointers. For the Heat, Butler had 20 points, Bam Adebayo put up 25 points and nine rebounds, while Kyle Lowry contributed 26 points and nine assists.
Overall, the Heat didn’t get it done defensively, as Golden State shot 51.9 percent from the field, while it also outrebounded them 45-34.