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The air of invincibility that had permeated the Miami Heat’s first two games was absent at the start. In its place was a quick 11-0 deficit.

Dwyane Wade then was absent at the start of the second half with a foot injury.

Gone, but not forgotten.

Regaining his legs, or at least enough of them, Wade banked in a short shot with 2.9 seconds to play to close out the scoring in a 96-95 victory on Wednesday night over the Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.

It was a somewhat surprising finish, one achieved after a Gerald Henderson three-pointer with 12.2 seconds to play had put the Bobcats up by one, because it was Wade who was designated as the go-to guy on a night LeBron James led the Heat with 35 points.

Wade, who had bruised his left foot and missed the first 10 minutes of the third period, was four of 12 from the field before his game-winner.

“When he called it,” Wade said of coach Erik Spoelstra’s instructions, “I was surprised, because LeBron had it going.”

Wade, in fact, was about to tell Spoelstra that it should be James’ play, then decided he was up to the moment.

Barely, with his left foot throbbing.

“I had no lift,” the veteran guard said, “that’s why I shot-putted it.”

For most of the night, it appeared the Heat had no lift, falling behind by 16 in the first half, then losing Wade at the start of the third quarter.

But there was enough in support to push the record to 3-0, from James, who also had seven assists and six rebounds, to 25 points on eight-of-13 shooting from forward Chris Bosh, to a needed 15-point outing from point guard Mario Chalmers and lockdown defense from Shane Battier in his longest outing of the season.

“You’ve got to win some of these games ugly,” Spoelstra said. “We settled down.”

The Heat held the Bobcats to 10 third-quarter points to get back into it and then rode the aggression of Bosh and James in the fourth until Wade had his moment.

Wade’s moment came after both he and James botched dunks, although James’s attempt should have counted since it bounced off Gerald Henderson’s head and back out after clearing the rim. James joked he would appeal to the league for his lost points.

But with the game on the line, it was Wade’s to win or lose.

Spoelstra said it was not because of Wade’s clutch reputation or James’s fourth-quarter struggles that had carried over to this season, but rather because he saw an opening on the same set that seconds earlier had resulted in a Wade turnover.

“We saw him able to put the ball on the floor,” Spoelstra said. “He had a rough night at times, but he saw a gap he could get into.”

The game ended with a missed three-point attempt by Bobcats guard D.J. Augustin.

“It’s good to see us show some resolve, some toughness,” Spoelstra said.

That resolve and toughness arrived when needed most.

“The first half,” James said, “wasn’t Miami Heat basketball.”

The Heat entered having trailed just 14 seconds this season. That figure grew exponentially, with Charlotte bolting to that 11-0 lead, moving ahead 32-20 after the first quarter and 60-45 at halftime.

Playing on the second night of their first back-to-back set of the season, the Heat hardly had the legs that powered a dazzling transition attack in the season-opening victories over the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics.

With Wade out at the start of the third quarter, James decided it had to be his style of basketball, consistently attacking the rim.

“I decided to add a little bit more,” he said, continuing his torrid scoring start to the season.

In the end, though, he stood aside, waiting and watching Wade win it.

“I guess,” James said with a grin, “that’s why they pay him the big bucks.”

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In Photo: Dwyane Wade elevates for a clear shot against Charlottes’ Bismack Biyombo, while the Heat’s Udonis Haslem and the Bobcats’ Byron Mullens look on. (AP)

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DALLAS —
It didn’t take long for Heat coach Erik Spoelstra to develop an early theme to this season.

In fact, it was a simple pregame act that set a symbolic tone, rather than the clever phrase or repurposed military reference that tended to inspire last season’s rallying cries.

Before the Mavericks had their brief, faintly emotional and surprisingly traditional banner-raising ceremony, the Heat quietly stepped away, heading to the hallways of the American Airlines Center rather than watch highlights of memorable Mavericks moments produced on Miami’s home floor.

It wasn’t a dismissive act. It wasn’t a defiant act. It wasn’t even an uncommon act.

It was simply an expression of what the Heat is at the moment: a team playing in the present and looking toward the future.

Reliving the past isn’t what this team wants to do, regardless if every outsider believes last season’s failure is what should motivate this group every moment of every game.

“It’s not about last season’s storylines,” Spoelstra said. “We already left last year behind.”

It’s not only an intelligent way to approach this second season of Mega-Heat, but it’s also largely true that this season should feel like a different experience for the Heat.

DIFFERENT FEEL

Last season was about learning each other and learning on the fly. It was about living up to mostly self-created expectations. It was about fighting off critics and adjusting to elevated scrutiny. It was as much about nonbasketball storylines as it was actual basketball.

This season has a different feel.

It’s about adjustments to last year, yes. But it’s not about redemption or attempting to right a wrong.

This is about growth and reaching a potential the team saw only flashes of last season.

And in this delayed opening game of the season, the one that didn’t start with a group of Heat players strolling down bitter-memory lane, the Heat displayed just how different this team can be.

“We played exactly how we wanted to play,” Chris Bosh said.

It’s a frightening thought that this team can say, with such short preparation time, that it played a game exactly as planned.

But you could see it from the start, with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade continuing the approach established during the preseason. A game dominated by a quick pace, aggressive attacks, ball movement and, of course, both LeBron and Wade spending extra time in the low-post rather than navigating through multiple defenders before even reaching the paint.

This was a team that clearly wasn’t concerned about external chatter, which affected last year’s Heat. This was just a team determined to perfect its style of play, and a few individuals determined to display shiny new elements of their game.

When you have those thoughts running through your head, it’s easy to shake off the past and concentrate on the right now.

“This was about us,” Spoelstra said. “About our journey.”

WHAT’S AHEAD

If this is the version of the Heat we’re going to see all season — and it’s impossible to determine considering how ragged the re-tooled Mavericks looked on a day that was as much about celebration for them as it was competition — then the rest of the NBA should’ve spent at least one brief moment shuddering on Christmas Day in anticipation of what’s to come.

Gotta run!.

Hold up together during the lockout, Heat president Pat Riley, CEO Nick Arison and coach Erik Spoelstra had plenty of time to tinker.

They looked at their team from every angle.

They weighed the positives.

They talked about new offensive philosophies.

They formulated a plan.

They decided on a new vision.

That new vision — Spoelstra’s vision — will be unveiled on Christmas Day against the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks.

In his preseason news conference, Riley called Spoelstra “innovative” and “not afraid to take chances.” Make no mistake, Spoelstra is taking a chance with the Heat’s roster this season.

Faster team

Gone are the aging centers: Erick Dampier, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Jamaal Magloire.

In its place remains a faster, younger but smaller rotation.

If the Heat’s first two preseason games were any indication — and, with no time to waste, they were — Year Two of the Big 3 will be the season the Heat tries to run every other team off the court.

“We are all committed to that as a franchise,” Spoelstra said. “In our talks as a staff, we really wanted to emphasize our strengths, which are our speed and our athleticism, and it’s something that our entire organization is on the same page about.”

Conformity and the offensive sets of the past have been replaced by a looser interpretation of the game.

As Chris Bosh put it, the Heat’s offense will be “free-flowing.”

“We’re just going to get out there and flow into it; we’re not going to make any calls,” Bosh said. “I think last year we were too bent on making calls, trying to run a specific play every time, when the set can really just be free-flowing.”

A fun game

The offense still will have rules and guidelines, Spoelstra cautioned, but set plays that can be scouted, charted and defended in a conventional sense have given way to basic principles: spacing in the open court, cuts to the basket, relying on the experience of familiarity to dictate the pace of the game.

In other words, it’s going to be fun to watch.

“Let’s just play basketball; let’s use our talents,” LeBron James said. “Let’s use our IQs of the game just to play.

“So I think [Spoelstra] has done an unbelievable job so far, in this training camp, of getting guys ready, but making them comfortable, as well.”

Last season, Spoelstra attempted to remove the governor and let the fuel of athleticism run freely.

The team wasn’t quite ready.

The familiarity wasn’t completely there.

“As a player, you say, ‘Yeah, we could have done it.’ No, we really couldn’t,” Wade said. “We kind of had to get structured a little.

“It would have been too much one-on-one because that’s what we’ve done a lot in our careers, all of us.

“So, it would have been a little too much. It wouldn’t have good continuity for the team. It would have been a lot of bad shots.”

From a practical standpoint, the shortened training camp could be an advantage for the Heat and its new offensive tendencies.

Complete team

“Tweaks,” as Spoelstra calls them. Unlike last season [and unlike many of the contenders around the league], the Heat returns mostly intact.

It’s a safe bet this team will not begin the season 9-8, which is where it found itself last season after visiting Dallas. The Heat now can build upon its experience.

“I think it’s comforting, knowing that we have a short period of time to try to get in shape, try to get the new guys involved, trying to do all these things, but not having to worry about that as much,” Wade said.

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MIAMI—

This was about renewal, considering the last time the Miami Heat appeared on this court they exited Game 6 of the NBA Finals vanquished by the Dallas Mavericks.

That was on June 12. In front of more Mavericks fans than anyone could have anticipated.

Thursday, it was purely red, white and black for the team’s annual training-camp scrimmage.

“It’s been too long,” coach Erik Spoelstra said at midcourt before it started. “We are so glad to be back.”

Also back was the enthusiasm carried through most of 2010-11 and the playoffs.

“We’re going to have a heck of a time here in this arena this season,” Spoelstra said.

They did on Thursday night, with LeBron James running the break with Dwyane Wade, with Chris Bosh shooting 3-pointers, and with first-round pick Norris Cole playing with a pep that few recent Heat point guards have had in their step in recent seasons.

It was an impressive debut for Cole, who hardly seemed overwhelmed by playing alongside and against the Heat’s Big Three, with the scrimmage’s rosters changed each quarter.

“You can see how he changes the pace as soon as he’s in there,” Spoelstra said of Cole. “The pace was pretty good. Guys are going to have to get used to playing a little bit faster.”

Cole, who closed 7 of 17 for 21 points with four assists, relished the moment.

“I haven’t been overwhelmed so far,” he said. “Obviously there’s a lot more to go.”

The next step comes Sunday, in the Heat’s lone home exhibition of a two-game preseason, a 6 p.m. game against the Orlando Magic.

Despite the scrimmage only being open to season-ticket holders, the lower bowl was nearly full by the midpoint of the second quarter, a crowd estimated at 9,000.

While this hardly was the complete Heat, with Shane Battier, Mike Miller, Eddie House and Eddy Curry sidelined by injuries, with Battier listed with strained left quad, it offered a particular encouraging start for Cole, the speedy selection out of Cleveland State, who played with the maturity and confidence of a four-year collegian.

“Norris has been great since we got him,” said assistant coach David Fizdale, who coached one of Thursday’s two teams. “He’s really astute. He’s very mature.”

Cole not only played at pace, but was smart with his decisions and displayed the NBA 3-point range that Heat hoped he could develop. He even received “No-no” nickname calls after his assists and a “coming out party” tweet from Heat owner Micky Arison.

“Norris can play,” Bosh said. “I think he’s really going to help this team.”

Cole’s performance makes Sunday’s matchup against Orlando’s Jameer Nelson all the more intriguing.

“It’s been very competitive all week,” Spoelstra said. “Neither one of them are giving up any ground.

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MIAMI—

Three days after opening training camp, the Miami Heat held their annual media day Monday at AmericanAirlines Arena, with coach Erik Spoelstra and team stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh cast in featured roles.

The media crowd was decidedly smaller than what James, Wade and Bosh attracted for last year’s media day at the University of Miami.

“Already this looks different than last year,” Spoelstra quipped during his interview session. “I remember the media session was four times what it is right now.”

The Heat’s exhibition opener is Sunday at home against the Orlando Magic. The regular season opens Dec. 25 on the road against the Dallas Mavericks.

What was said by Spoelstra, Wade, James and Bosh:

– Wade doesn’t see it as a make-or-break season for keeping the Big Three together, “no concern about that.” But, “If we don’t win a championship, yes, it’s a bust year. Last year was a bust year.”

– By contrast, Spoelstra bristled at the notion of losing the NBA Finals to the Dallas Mavericks as an epic failure. “We don’t view it that way,” he said. “That’s part of this journey. We have another shot at it this year. And that’s what we’re committed to, is giving ourselves another shot there, at the end.”

– Bosh agreed, “We still got two wins away from accomplishing our ultimate goal.”

– Yes, Bosh said, there is confidence. “I think we’re the best team in the league,” he said, “and we’re going to work like it.”

– Bosh, on either win title or total failure, “I think that’s pretty obvious. It was like that for us last year. There’s not else left for us to do but win it all.”

– Spoelstra, on the travails of last season, “We went through enough of that last season. Last year felt at times like it was two or three seasons in one with our group, with the amount we experienced.”

– Wade, on trying to quiet naysayers last season, “that probably wasn’t the right intentions for this team.”

– Wade downplayed James’ struggles in the Finals, “We lost the Finals together.”

– James on a new season, “You never really can often get over losing the Finals, but I think you have to move on because there’s a season now.”

– James continues his upbeat perspective, “It’s a different feeling coming into this year, honestly, for me, personally. I’m more alive, more being back to myself. . . . I’m at a good place right now. Not much bothers me anymore.”

– Bosh said there is a higher degree of comfort the second time around. “We caught ourselves in a lot of situations last season where we were really trying to figure things out,” he said.

– Lockout? What lockout? James said he’s just glad to have any schedule, “I don’t care if we had 66 games in 66 days. I’m so happy to be back.”

– James, on Spoelstra, “Our relationship will continue to grow. It’s much better today than it was the first day of practice last year.”

– Spoelstra declined to discuss the possibility of adding a veteran point guard, with Chauncey Billups possibly to come free. “At the same time, I know the personality of my boss,” he said of Pat Riley. “He is always pushing. Pat’s proven he’ll pull the trigger.”

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Dwight Howard is divorcing Orlando.

Chris Paul is contemplating litigation to get out of New Orleans.

The defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks have been forced to make major changes to their starting lineup.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ initial attempt at a free-agency overhaul was thwarted by NBA commissioner David Stern.

All around the league, rosters are in flux, new faces are being introduced and new chemistry is being established with less than two weeks before the start of the season. The NBA’s lockout and truncated preseason, which coincides with a shortened period for free agency, has turned the league into a tempest of discord. While chaos swirls elsewhere, all is calm on the shores of Miami.

“Give it time,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said on Sunday. “I’m sure there will be something right around the corner.”

Spoelstra’s wry comment came as an answer to a question about the Heat’s relative calm amid the dizzying swap meet taking place throughout the league before the season begins.

Perhaps superstition prompted the Heat’s young coach to sidestep the question. Why jinx it?

Unless something drastic upsets the Heat’s training camp, the team and its ultra-talented roster will coast to Christmas Day while other teams arrive there in fits and starts.

“Time is of the essence and we do have the core of our guys back and it helps,” Spoelstra said.

House in order

The Heat endured its growing pains last season, which now, in hindsight, is playing out like a bit of managerial genius.

The Heat’s house is in order while other major contenders have been dealt a house of cards by the lockout.

Consider: With only two weeks to prepare for a hectic, 66-game season, the Heat’s biggest free-agent move was bringing in a player (Shane Battier) considered one of the league’s most valued “glue guys.”

“We’re going to go much quicker in camp,” Spoelstra said. “A little bit less teaching of some of the minutiae that we had to do last year because we had so many new players.”

Unprecedented for training camps of the past, the Heat held a five-on-five scrimmage on its first full day of practice. Meanwhile, several coaches around the league still don’t know exactly who will be on their rosters when the season begins Dec. 25. Under the circumstances, a veteran team returning mostly intact is priceless.

Instead of wasting valuable time teaching Chris Bosh the Heat’s sophisticated defense, Bosh arrived to training camp bulked up and ready to play center in a pinch.

Team chemistry

Instead of waiting for the on-court chemistry to click between LeBron James and Udonis Haslem, the two already have learned each others’ tendencies.

“OK, so we’ve had almost six months off, but that experience is invaluable and oftentimes experience is what it is — it takes time to fast track it and we went through a lot of those growing pains last year and really made tremendous strides,” Spoelstra said. “We’re hoping that we what learned we’ll be able to recognize much quicker here and I anticipate that.”

On Saturday, Spoelstra reviewed “big-picture” concepts that the Heat used during the NBA Finals.

On Sunday, the Heat held two practices — a light session in the morning and a more strenuous workout in the afternoon.

Big advantage

Meanwhile, the Dallas Mavericks, the Heat’s opponent on Christmas Day, are waiting for disgruntled ex-Laker Lamar Odom to report to camp while offensive sparkplug J.J. Barea is likely headed out of town.

Advantage, Heat.

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MANILA, Philippines – Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra was delighted when he was informed of the record breaking television ratings for the 2011 NBA Finals, which aired on ABS-CBN.

The Finals saw Spoelstra’s Heat lose in 6 games to the Dallas Mavericks.

Despite their loss, Spoelstra was thankful for the support of the Filipinos.

“It’s not a secret that there are some people in America that are rooting against us,” he said. “So with other people rooting for us, our guys really responded to that.”

“I let them know a couple of times during the year that we had a lot of fans that might not be coming from the US, but outside Florida and in places you might not expect,” Spoelstra added.

“To all the fans in the Philippines who are following and supporting the Miami Heat, we truly appreciate it,” he said.

He also assured all the Heat fans that the team is ready to bounce back from their setback in the Finals.

“We will be back tougher and stronger next year,” he promised.

“We need your support, considering we don’t have a lot fans in the States,” Spoelstra added. “But they all know how popular they are here, and we can’t thank you enough.” – Report from TJ Manotoc, ABS-CBN News

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MANILA, Philippines – Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is back in the Philippines, months after leading his team to the NBA Finals.

Spoelstra, the 1st Filipino-American head coach in the NBA, is headlining the NBA FIT Philippines 2011, the league’s global comprehensive health and wellness program.

Spoelstra will conduct special NBA-style basketball clinics for young Filipino basketball players during his visit.

“This platform is something that hits home with me,” Spoelstra said. “Being physically fit is critical for our players and paramount for the success of our franchise.”

Spoelstra also said that he is also trying to live a healthy lifestyle.

“I have made a fitness pledge. I’ve tried to make a lifetime commitment to live an active lifestyle,” he said. “Being part of this program is really terrific and I’m honored to be part of it.”

Earlier, he visited the National University as part of NBA FIT’s Clinic School Tour. Spoelstra is also scheduled to visit Rizal High School, Emilio Aguinaldo College, and Torres High School.

Spoelstra will also pay a visit to his mother’s hometown of San Pablo, Laguna on Thursday, and participate in the NBA FIT Mall Tour on Saturday at the SM Mall of Asia.

International Pinoy sport star

Despite being idolized by Filipinos all over the world for his achievements in basketball, Spoelstra said that he does not look at himself as an idol.

“I have to pinch myself sometimes. I don’t look at myself as a celebrity, or as somebody who is idolized,” he said.

“I think this is a unique opportunity I have experience, one that not many other coaches have been able to live,” he added.

Spoelstra said that he was thankful to be able to share his love of basketball to his family.

“The game of basketball has been tremendous to me, and it goes so far and see so many places in this world. I feel the responsibility to give back to this game,” Spoelstra said.

Thankful for Pinoy support

Spoelstra also thanked his fellow Pinoys for their support, especially during Miami’s run to the Finals.

“To all the fans in the Philippines who are following and supporting the Miami Heat, we truly appreciate it,” he said.

The Heat lost to the Dallas Mavericks in 6 games. – Report by TJ Manotoc, ABS-CBN News

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WHEN Erik Spoelstra flew in via Philippine Airlines from Los Angeles—with a one-night stopover in Hong Kong—the Miami Heat coach had quite a few things in mind.

In his third trip back to the Philippines since taking a high-profile coaching job with the Heat, every trip back to his mother’s homeland has had all the makings of a homecoming.

“There are the relatives I rarely see,” he thought. “And a several hundred thousand others who have opened their arms to me.”

“He’s become a symbol of the capabilities of Filipinos all around the world,” noted NBA Asia’s Senior Director of Business Development Ed Winkle of Spoelstra.

And there was NBA Fit, the program that he has committed his life to. “It’s not just a commitment,” he cleared. “It’s a life that you commit to.”

It was a warm thought. But Spoelstra also had to brace himself with a slew of questions about the previous campaign of the Heat that ended in defeat to the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.

In perhaps the most high-profile coaching job in the NBA now that Phil Jackson retired from the Los Angeles Lakers, Spoelstra, in Manila for a week for the second year of the NBA Fit program, related that there are a lot of key learnings in the pro league.

“I think it’s just as important that one practices what he preaches. In a stressful and demanding world, you have to make the right decisions in what you eat and drink. It’s so easy and tempting to reach out for junk food but it doesn’t help you. That helps you become mentally and physically sharper and focused to deal with the NBA grind.”

Spoelstra, a fitness buff, joins the Miami Heat workouts, something that assistant David Fizdale recounted during their visit last year, “resonates well with the players. He can back up the talk.”

The third year head coach of the Heat underscored that the previous campaign of the Heat where superstars Chris Bosh and LeBron James joined resident star Dwyane Wade in Miami, was simply the beginning of a journey.

“There are things you learn during the season—how to block out the ‘noise’ from the outside, how to deal with adversity, how to motivate people… and that goes for myself and the coaching staff. Not just the players. But it’s going into a season with a clear goal of what you want. Once everyone commits to that then everything else follows. But the journey isn’t over. It’s just beginning.”

The NBA Fit is the league’s global health and wellness program that encourages physical activity and healthy living for children and families. It is fully endorsed by the Department of Health.

 “We had such a great response to last year’s program,” added Winkle of NBA Fit. “People like the program and it helps that we have an excellent role model in Erik at the forefront of the program.”

NBA Fit will hold a development camp and celebrity challenge at the Araneta Coliseum on August 5, a clinic at the Mall of Asia on August 6 and Fun Run at the Bonifacio Global City on August 7.

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MIAMI —
If the Miami Heat are going to recover and win this NBA championship, they may want to put the Dallas Mavericks away before the final minutes.

Otherwise, they could be in more than a little trouble.

Five games into the NBA finals, the Heat have had chances to win all five games. A case could be made that they should have won all five, especially after they held leads in every matchups in this series. But instead of having the title or being in the driver’s seat in the championship chase, the Heat are on the cusp of elimination heading into Game 6 at Miami on Sunday night.

“There’s obviously going to be some priorities in terms of closing out games, which we’ve been very good at the last two and a half months, and particularly during our playoff run,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said after the Game 5 loss gave the Mavs a 3-2 series lead. “We haven’t been able to do it consistently enough in this series. And that’s something we’ll address. That’s been a fabric all season long, being able to work and improve on things.”

Improvement is necessary, or else Dallas will hoist a trophy in Miami.

Weary from a week on the road, the Heat arrived home around 4:30 a.m. Friday. As expected, Spoelstra gave the team a day off, though many were expected at the team’s headquarters for some work and treatment. That includes Dwyane Wade, who bruised his left hip in the first quarter on Thursday and managed to score a team-best 23 points.

The score hurt worse than the hip after Game 5.

Miami led 99-95 after Wade hit a 3-pointer with 4:37 left, and it seemed like the Heat were poised to take a stranglehold on the series. Except they collapsed — again, following the script that doomed them in Games 2 and 4 as well.

“You go back and look at the film and see exactly what the breakdown was,” Heat forward Udonis Haslem said. “I don’t know how guys were getting open. It’s just one game, a couple of plays. We’re definitely capable of beating these guys and we’ll figure it out.”

Thing is, it’s not just one game or a couple of plays.

It’s an all-out trend in this series: Dallas is owning the final minutes.

— Game 2, Dallas trailed 88-73 when Wade made a 3-pointer with 7:14 remaining. The Mavs outscored Miami 22-5 the rest of the way.

— Game 4, Udonis Haslem’s jumper with 10:12 left gave Miami a 74-65 lead. From there, Dallas went on a game-ending 21-9 run.

— Game 5, the 99-95 Heat lead after Wade’s 3 vanished quickly, with the Mavericks finishing with a 17-4 kick to move one win from the title.

“It seems like every series up to this point, we’ve had those huge games where we’re able to get a lead and keep the momentum,” Mavs center Tyson Chandler said. “That’s a resilient team on the other side that we’re against. They do a great job of coming back and applying pressure. When you think you got them out, they come back. You have to give them a lot of credit for that.”

Some are giving credit. Others are giving the Heat, well, heat.

Dirk Nowitzki has 52 points in the fourth quarters of the finals, by far the most, doing it on 13 of 27 shooting from the field and an impressive 24-for-24 from the foul line. That’s more free throws than the Heat have combined in fourth quarters during this series (22).

More disturbing for Miami may be that LeBron James has only 11 points in fourth quarters, as many as Jason Kidd and J.J. Barea.

“We’ve had a few breakdowns late in games in this series that we didn’t have in the first three series,” James said. “So it’s something we know we can do. We just got to push through it. At this point we have no choice, honestly. We got two games left, and we worked hard all year to get home-court advantage. So we have to take advantage of it.”

True, what seemed like a meaningless regular-season finale at Toronto, a game where Wade, James and Chris Bosh sat out, turned out to have colossal importance.

Had Miami not won that night, it would not have the home-court edge over the Mavericks. Now the Heat play at home with the pressure of needing to win twice for the NBA title.

“By definition, this certainly is a series of mental and physical endurance, and that’s why it’s a seven-game series,” Spoelstra said Thursday night before the team left Dallas. “Each game is a possession game going down to the stretch. We were able to steal one here, and they did what they needed to do. They took care of the last two games going down the stretch. So we’re going back to Miami, and we have to do the same thing.”

It’s happened before in the NBA, teams coming home down 3-2 and recovering to win the finals. Just last year, the Los Angeles Lakers were in that position against the Boston Celtics, rallying to take the championship.

Nowitzki seemed to be speaking with an abundance of caution Thursday night, noting that winning three does not guarantee winning four.

“It’s not a best-of-five series. It’s a best-of-seven,” Nowitzki said. “So the first team to four wins. … The series is not over. If you look at it really now, all that’s happened, you can look they won their two home games, we won all three home games. That’s how you look at it. They got two more. So far it looks like everybody protected their home court and they still have two games at home. So there’s really nothing to celebrate.”

Wade went to some of those Lakers-Celtics finals games last year in person, and his mind couldn’t help but wander to what was potentially coming for the Heat last summer in free agency — when this team was built for this moment, to win titles.

“The good thing about life and the good thing about this game, we get another opportunity, another crack at it,” Wade said. “We know it’s the thing that’s going to either lose or win us a championship. It comes down to either not closing out games or closing it out. We have another game Sunday to be able to do that.”

Or else.

“I don’t have a choice now,” Haslem said. “We’ll go home and we’ll play all out.”

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