About the time Boston fans began leaving quietly into the night with less than a minute left, the small smile of accomplishment began flickering on Miami Heat players. Tyler Herro, at the free-throw-line, offered a quick grin to Bam Adebayo, who offered one back before finishing their night’s work.

Caleb Martin, as the clock ticked toward zero, smiled at Jaime Jaquez Jr., before walking off the court by the stone faces of Boston Celtic players and the stunned looks of their fans.

What had they done in pulling off a 111-101 win in Game 2 of their playoff series? Was this a one-off kind of wonderful night that reversed a 20-point loss in Game 1 and rewarded their resolve?

Or was it a step toward something more surprising? Erik Spoelstra stood amid his players in the locker room afterward, as shown on TNT, and amid the talk of a “very productive” game and caution to rest up for Saturday’s Game 3 in Miami planted the seed of something more.

“We understand, you know, that this is still a long series,’’ he said.

No one outside the Heat expected a long series with Jimmy Butler (and Terry Rozier) out. No one really thinks an injured, eighth-seeded Heat can pull off what would be the biggest playoff upset in NBA history by beating top-seeded Boston over a seven-game series. It would be the greatest story ever dribbled.

The Heat start a rookie, a 20-year-old, an undrafted veteran who was out of a job when the Heat signed him and two mid-level, first-round picks who have three All-Star appearances combined (all three by Adebayo). Four of Boston’s five starters have played in multiple All-Star games.

If this was a pickup game at the park, Boston would have three of the first four picks (Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis vs. Adebayo). You can make a sensible case that Boston is better in every area than the Heat except, strikingly, the coaching. This was the latest night that told you everything about Spoelstra.

“I’m going to give Coach Spo a lot of credit for giving those guys the confidence that they can win,’’ TNT’s Kenny Smith said.

Start there in explaining Game 2. The young Heat were run off the court from the start of Game 1 and lost by 20 points. So, Spoelstra not only had to emotionally help his players regroup but strategically give them something to believe in.

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