CLEVELAND — Observations and other notes of interest from Wednesday night’s 120-103 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers:

– Desperate measures for a desperate time?

– Perhaps not.

– But the five-game losing streak the Heat carried into the night seemingly called for change.

– So Heat coach Erik Spoelstra changed.

– Norman Powell back as a starter.

– Where most All-Stars prefer to be.

– And Pelle Larsson to the bench.

– Through no fault of his own.

– It was the first time Larsson did not start when available since Jan. 13.

– The starting lineup was rounded out by Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, Tyler Herro and Davion Mitchell.

– With the Heat 3-3 entering the night with that lineup.

– So this now the approach going forward?

– Spoelstra, of course, not one to tip his hand.

– Spoelstra, in fact, was asked pregame about whether he is closer to formulating a stable rotation for the postseason.

– “We’re forging ahead,” he said. “I mean, I’m not planning my playoff rotations right now. No, we have work to do. Obviously, we’re trying to move up and that’s keeping us all occupied. But we feel encouraged that we’re finally healthy and it’s coming at a good time. We need it.”

– That left unsaid whether there even will be a set rotation or more matching up with the opposition.

– “Number one. I’m not telling you. All right?” Spoelstra said with a grin. “But we’ll have our rotation out there. We feel very good about having all of our guys available, and that’s a big strength of our roster, is our depth and our versatility throughout the rotation. What we need is consistency of play.”

– The Cavaliers, without Dean Wade, Jarrett Allen and Max Strus, among others, opened with a lineup of Evan Mobley Jr., Keon Ellis, Sam Merrill, James Harden and Donovan Mitchell.

– It was Harden’s 1,000th career regular-season start, one of nine active players at that figure.

– With Allen out, it made it easier for the Heat to start smaller.

– Larsson and Jaime Jaquez Jr. entered together first off the Heat bench.

– Kel’el Ware followed.

– With Kaspras Jakucionis making it nine deep.

– Again leaving previous rotation components Dru Smith and Simone Fontecchio out of the mix.

– With again not a sniff of rotation time for Nikola Jovic.

– Spoelstra’s catchphrase going in again was “competitive will.”

– Noting, “Defensively, it hasn’t been to our standards. We’ve played some good teams. They’ve raised their level, and we weren’t able to do that.”

– With faith, he said, enduring.

– “We believe in our defense,” he continued, “We think that fuels so much more, even for us offensively. If we get some more stops, it’ll all fall in line.”

– Spoelstra believes the messaging is resonating, even if the results are not always there.

– “The thing about our group is they’re echoing the message to each other, even starting before I even have to meet with the team,” he said. “We’ve fought extremely hard to have a top-five defense. We’ve grinded through games and take a lot of pride on that side of the floor. But it’s an explosive offensive league. You let up on your mentality at all, the offensive talent that you face can get to you.”

– Spoelstra was asked at the morning shootaround of Myron Gardner as an energizer.

– “Energy, effort is a talent in this league,” Spoelstra said. “Because not everybody does it, certainly not to the extent that he does. And what he can provide sometimes is a bolt of inspiration, Through that relentless energy.”

– Spoelstra added, “And he’s getting better with the details, too. Defensively, so he’s not fouling as much with his aggressiveness. And offensively, he’s really improved. He’s very good as an open shooter. And he can play within our principles on drives. And you feel pretty confident he’ll make the right play.”