The Miami HEAT defeated the Washington Wizards 113-108 Saturday night at Capital One Arena. Dwyane Wade led the way for the HEAT with 20 points. Five other players scored in double-figures for Miami.
1. Wade Takes Over Late
With this being a very important game for the HEAT as they push for the playoffs, Wade brought the necessary intensity and focus needed to come away victorious.
And while he led the team with 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting in the fourth thanks to crafty finishes inside and tough outside shots, this great steal on Troy Brown Jr. was also important:
In addition to his 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting and that steal above, Wade also tallied nine boards and five assists.
2. BAM Records A Career High
Although Bam Adebayo continued to score in a variety of different ways, his biggest impact came as a facilitator.
In fact, the 21-year-old dished out a team and career-high eight assists, with none as impressive as this no-look pass to James Johnson in the third quarter:
Whoa.
Then a little later, Adebayo came through with this important finish with contact as Miami was trying to put the game away:
When it was all said and done, the former Kentucky Wildcat amassed 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, a team-high 11 rebounds, a team-high four blocks and a plus-16 rating to go along with his aforementioned eight assists.
3. Waiters Stays Hot From Deep
Simply put, Dion Waiters continued to do damage from the perimeter and led the HEAT with four treys, including this big one in transition late in the third quarter:
Waiters finished with 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting, three rebounds, three assists and a plus-15 rating.
Other Takeaways:
-Erik Spoelstra drew up this perfect sideline out of bounds play to give Kelly Olynyk an easy dunk and Miami a two-possession lead with 16.8 seconds left to play:
Olynyk ended up with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting, seven rebounds, five assists, three blocks, two steals and a team-high plus-19 rating.
Game Notes:
-Justise Winslow (Right Thigh Bruise), Yante Maten (Sioux Falls Assignment) and Charles Cooke (Sioux Falls Assignment) were inactive.
-Rodney McGruder (Left Knee Soreness) was an active scratch.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will now head home to prepare for their showdown with the Magic on Tuesday night at 7:30 PM. Tickets for that game at AmericanAirlines Arena can be found here.