It was clear in the early 2020s that Jimmy Butler became the leader and marquee star of the Miami Heat. Now that the former Eastern Conference Finals MVP had moved to the Golden State Warriors, Coach Erik Spoelstra had to rely on someone else to become their heart and soul. Who took on that mantle?

As the Miami Heat have won three straight games after beating the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night, it has been an emotional past handful of weeks dealing with coming off a 10-game skid and even a recent return.

Jimmy Butler walked back to the Warriors locker room at the end of Tuesday’s game without exchanging any handshakes or words with his former Heat teammates and coaches. Bam Adebayo and Butler