"I tell him he's the second light-skinned player I love watching play, right behind Steph Curry" – Dewayne Dedmon jokes about Caleb Martin filling Jimmy Butler's shoes

Miami Heat big man Dewayne Dedmon's favorite light-skinned player to watch is Steph Curry. After the win against the Portland Trail Blazers, he answered a question about Jimmy Butler's ejection and praised Caleb Martin for stepping up, calling him the second light-skinned player he loves watching play.

"You saw Caleb tonight? Any time we lose somebody, Caleb seems to always be the one to step up and show out. ... I told Caleb he's the second light-skinned player I love watching play, right behind Steph Curry. That's my guy, and for him to come out here and play like he did tonight, it's great to see."

Despite Butler's exit in the second quarter, the Heat came out with a 104-92 victory Wednesday night. They have followed the "next man up" mentality and have won games without key players all season.

The Heat have been without their headliner for a while. Butler has been in and out of the lineup a lot either due to COVID-19 protocols or injury-related issues. Against Portland, Butler got thrown out of the game for barking at the referees after he finally got the foul call he wanted. He was hit with two technicals in a matter of seconds, and his ejection was the highlight of the night.

Butler left in the second period after 15 minutes of playing time and Martin took over off the bench. In the second and third quarters, Martin went off on 8-for-12 shooting, including 3-5 from 3-point range, to finish with 26 points. He also grabbed eight rebounds, dished out two assists and was plus-15 for the night.

Dedmon spoke about how Miami has remained unfazed in the face of adversity in executing their gameplan despite players missing games. He said:

"I tell Jimmy all the time, we don't need him. We play great basketball without Jimmy. On a serious note, it's good, we know what we have to do when we lose players. We've been doing it all year, so any time a player goes down, it's 'next man up' mentality."

Nikola Jokic calls Steph Curry the most impressive player in the NBA

Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets guarding the Golden State Warriors' Steph Curry [Source: AP]

The reigning MVP Nikola Jokic is another player who is a fan of Steph Curry's wizardry. In an interview with Arena Sport TV, the "Joker" was asked who he thinks is the the most impressive player in the league and he didn't hesitate before answering Curry.

"For sure it's Steph Curry," Jokic said. "I say that to pretty much everyone. If you don't like watching him play, you probably don't like watching basketball as a sport altogether."

"He plays in such a lucid way, I sometimes catch myself thinking, 'Look at what this guy is doing,' but, my God, his shots just keep falling. He pulls up from such distances, I feel like my shots wouldn't even reach from that far away."

Curry's Warriors met Jokic's Nuggets on Dec. 28, and Denver came out with a victory despite the "Baby-faced Assassin" dropping 23 points. The Warriors also met Miami earlier this month and won 115-108. Curry will take on the Heat in late March and has three more games with the Nuggets this season.