The Golden State Warriors (9-7) complete a six-game road trip on Wednesday night with the back end of a Florida back-to-back against the Miami Heat (8-6), who are 6-1 at the Kaseya Center after a Monday night victory.

The short-handed Warriors took advantage of the Heat's sluggish play, rallying from that early 16-point deficit to tie the score at 43 with 2:43 left in the second quarter. The Warriors entered halftime trailing the Heat by just four points despite shooting only 27.8% from the field and 6 of 27 (22.2%) from three-point range in the first half.

Brandin Podziemski scored 20 to lead the depleted Warriors, who got 19 from Quinten Post and 18 from Buddy Hield in a loss that ended their road trip at 3-3.

Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo did some trolling after knocking off the Golden State Warriors without Jimmy Butler.

The Warriors planned to battle it out in Miami without Steph Curry, Al Horford, Jonathan Kuminga, and De’Anthony Melton, as they were all ruled out as early as Wednesday afternoon. Buddy Hield was another questionable player on the report early on.

Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry will miss Wednesday's game against the Miami Heat due to an ankle injury.

With the Miami Heat taking on the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night, it will mark the expected return of Jimmy Butler to the Kaseya Center. After the Heat beat the New York Knicks in a 115-113 thriller on Monday, the team will no doubt be surrounded by storylines with Butler, prompting a response by head coach Erik Spoelstra.

The Golden State Warriors, with their top players in street clothes, held their own for three quarters against the Miami Heat before losing 110-96 on Wednesday night.

The pace race has proven a winnable commodity for the Miami Heat . .. but at what cost to the league and even to those who might choose to run in the other direction?