CLEVELAND — Observations and other notes of interest from Friday night’s 149-128 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers:

– The defensive questions?

– The lack of size?

– The compatibility on offense?

– The ugliness at the start Friday night?

– Heat coach Erik Spoelstra doesn’t want to hear it.

– Reiterating before Friday night’s game that he is committed to starting Tyler Herro alongside Norman Powell.

– Spoelstra said the Herro-Powell opening pairing isn’t going anywhere, no matter the skeptics.

– “I mean the overarching thing is just help us win,” Spoelstra said of the mandate to the two. “And we feel really encouraged about their minutes together. And we’re moving forward with it.”

– He added, “I’m definitely not overthinking this at this point. They both know how to impact the game. And they both know our defensive system.”

– Powell said the lineup, even at this late stage of the season, remains somewhat of a work in progress.

– “I think the potential is high,” Powell said, “I mean, we haven’t been able to see that group in a large enough sample size to see what we can do. But just the potential and versatility of that unit from top to bottom, I think our ceiling’s really high once we continue to build that chemistry, figure out how everyone likes to play, where everyone’s going to be, sacrificing for one another,”

– If they can build it.

– If they can figure it out.

– It reached a point Friday that Spoelstra utilized a coaching challenge midway through the opening period to get the third foul called on Powell rescinded so Powell and Herro could continue to work together.

– The challenge was successful.

– The pairing? Questions ongoing.

– With his 10th point, Herro tied Rony Seikaly for sixth place on the franchise all-time list for regular season games scoring in double figures, at 344.

– In the end, 15 points Friday night for Powell, 11 for Herro, with Powell closed at a -12, Herro a -23. Herro played 31 minutes, Powell 25.

– The Heat made it two games in a row opening with Powell, Herro, Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell in a smaller-ball lineup, even with Jarrett Allen back for the Cavaliers.

– Even while getting to a set lineup, Spoelstra said tweaks will be ongoing.

– “The minutes,” he said, “we’ll figure that out as it goes.”

– Pelle Larsson was first off the Heat bench, entering for Herro with the Heat down 21-10.

– Kel’el Ware and Jaime Jaquez Jr. then entered in the Heat’s second substitution.

– With Kasparas Jakucionis for the second consecutive game rounding out the nine-man primary rotation.

– Then, with the deficit reaching 19 in the second period, Spoelstra reached for Simone Fontecchio, who did not play Wednesday night.

– Corresponding to the lineup put back in place has been a minutes reduction for Wiggins.

– “I think he feels great physically right now,” Spoelstra said, “and that’s where we want him for this final stretch.”

– But it also means Wiggins opening at power forward, guarding up in size.

– “It’s not a concern,” Spoelstra said. “He’s done that the majority of the season and over the course of the last several years.”

– Indeed, it is a role Wiggins often has had to play while playing alongside Draymond Green with the Warriors, when Green was cast at center.

– “That’s why I think he’s had one of the more underrated defensive years this year,” Spoelstra said of Wiggins. “He’s guarded one through five for us all season long.”

– Spoelstra entered aware of the challenge of beating the same team in consecutive games.

– “It’s not easy to beat a team twice,” he said, “And we like that challenge.”

– It proved to be quite the challenge.

– With little to like about it.