Miami Heat revert to `90s-style defense in victory against Toronto

Miami Heat improve to 16-1 at home after low-scoring win against the Toronto Raptors

Miami Heat guard Jimmy Butler is a firm believer in effort.

There is no excuse for lacking it on the basketball court. That’s what makes it so easy for him to play tough defense each night. That mantra is beginning to spill over to the rest of his teammates.

The Heat turned in arguably their best defensive performance of the season in Thursday’s 84-76 victory against the Toronto Raptors at AmericanAirlines Arena. The Raptors shot just 31 percent.

“I think we were in the passing lanes and we were getting hands on a lot of balls,” Butler said. “We were locked in. We really were. These are the (games) that we like because it definitely shows what you’re made out of. I used to win in so many different ways but we can always count on guarding if you’re not making shots. You take care of the ball, you rebound and you guard.”

The Heat are now 16-1 at home this season and hold the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference entering Friday’s game at the Orlando Magic. The defensive effort against the Raptors, who were without Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol and Normal Powell, had coach Erik Spoelstra thinking back to the NBA from the 1990s when performances as such were the norm. The 76 points by the Raptors were a season-low and the second-lowest in the league this season.

They became yet another victim of the Heat’s strong zone defense, which has become their go-to method of defending.

“Those are two tough teams going at it, two teams with chips on their shoulders,” Spoelstra said. “We found a way to make some plays. Ultimately, it was about disposition, effort, commitment to that side of the floor. To be honest, we didn’t drill one zone possession until (Wednesday).”

 The Heat have gotten off to a 25-9 start mainly because their fourth-ranked offense (111.6 ppg) but Spoelstra has driven home the point of improving defensively. He has learned over the years its importance in the postseason.

“We were listening to what Spo was saying,” center Bam Adebayo said. “We needed to guard, we needed to defend and that’s what we did. It just shows we can do it … we know teams are going to make shots. It’s just the effort level.”