MIAMI – For this reason, the Miami Heat have put their 2023 offseason on hold.

Because they were on Dame Time.

Dame Time arrived at the Kaseya Center on Tuesday evening.

Lillard scored 25 of his 37 points in the first half to help push the Milwaukee Bucks past the Heat 106-103 on a night when the Bucks were without missing forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Yes, a fight until the end of 22 minutes in the third period. But in the end, it wasn’t enough for the Heat to keep up with Lillard and the Bucks.

“We had to put in so much effort in the second half. But we have to be if we want to achieve our goal,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. “We were flying around in the second half. I just want to see 48 minutes a game.”

It was two summers ago, before his longed-for departure from the resurgent Portland Trail Blazers, that Lillard chose the Heat as his preferred destination.

It was also two summers ago when Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin deemed the Heat’s assets inadequate and effectively managed the Heat through July and August before trading Lillard to the Bucks.

At the time, the Heat were looking for a volume scorer.

On Tuesday night, Lillard was on full display, shooting 10 of 17 from the field, 8 of 13 on 3-pointers and 9 of 9 from the line, along with 12 assists.

That proved enough to make up for Antetokounmpo’s absence — despite a late Heat rally from 22 down — to push the Bucks to .500 and get the Heat below .500.

“It was like he was out there practicing,” Heat guard Terry Rozier said of the ease of Lillard’s offense. “It’s kind of crazy.”

The loss effectively eliminated the Heat from the NBA Cup promotion race, but they are now 1-2 in the league’s second annual tournament this season, with Friday night’s home game against the Toronto Raptors remaining in group play.

The Heat got 23 points from Jimmy Butler, 18 from Tyler Herro, 17 from Rozier and 16 from Bam Adebayo.

Five degrees of heat from the game on Tuesday evening:

1. Closing time: The Bucks led 31-20 after the first quarter, with Lillard scoring 17 points in the opening period. Lillard shot 4 of 5 on 3-pointers in the first quarter, while the Heat went 1 of 8.

The Bucks then took a 65-51 halftime lead, with Lillard already having 25 points at that point.

The Heat lost 22 points early in the third period, but rallied to 85-80 before the fourth period.

Butler then returned with 7:27 to play with the Heat trailing 91-86, with five straight Rozier points bringing the Heat to 93-91 with 5:45 to play and a Butler basket on a keeper led to a 96:96 draw.

Two 3-pointers from AJ Green later gave the Bucks a 104-100 lead with 2:24 to play, and Rozier responded with a 3-pointer with 29 seconds left to make it 104-103.

The Heat then forced a 24-second violation, giving them possession with five seconds left in the game.

From there, there was a wayward 3-point attempt from Herro and two free throws from Taurean Prince, and the Bucks held on.

When Herro scored three points when the Heat trailed, Spoelstra said of that open look, “I’ll take that 10 out of 10.”

2. Rozier’s return: Rozier was back in action after missing the previous two games due to foot soreness.

In contrast to his previous 12 appearances, he played as a reserve, the second Heat substitute to be used after Kevin Love.

“It’s just an adjustment I’m willing to make,” Rozier said afterward.

It was only the second time Rozier played as a Heat reserve. The other time, Rozier made his Heat debut on Jan. 24 after being acquired from the Hornets for Kyle Lowry and a first-round pick.

He finished 7 of 9 from the field, including 3 of 4 on 3-pointers.

“It’s not easy and I feel for Terry,” Spoelstra said of the role reversal. “Well, firstly, he got injured and we’re at the start of a season where we’re looking.”

Rozier scored 13 points in the fourth quarter.

“We saw in the fourth quarter that he was a dynamic offensive player,” Spoelstra said. “We want to give him confidence.”