Category: NBA

MIAMI – The payoff for five days off? A fifth straight loss. Whether playing games in bunches or otherwise, it is not going well for the Miami Heat, this time falling 106-96 Monday night to the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center. Still without a victory since Dec. 1, the Heat this time could not overcome another injury absence from guard Tyler Herro. Factor in an ugly early tumble that left Heat forward Nikola Jovic with an elbow injury and the return from the five-day break seemingly only pushed Erik Spoelstra’s team further toward a breaking point. As has been the case in recent games, the...

MIAMI — Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic left Monday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors with his right arm in a protective brace after a hard fall when he was fouled in the first quarter. The Heat initially listed it as an elbow injury, ruling him out for the night. Jovic, who had been held out of the rotation in two of the previous three games, got the opportunity for the playing time with Tyler Herro (toe) and Pelle Larsson (ankle) sidelined for the Heat. Herro was a late scratch due to the toe issue that previously had sidelined him for two games last week. Jovic entered Monday...

ORLANDO — At the outset Tuesday night, it was as if the Heat already had passage booked to Las Vegas for the final two rounds of the NBA Cup. A 15-0 lead can do that. Not so fast . . . as Vegas baby turned into Vegas maybe and then, ultimately, leaving Las Vegas. In the end, Erik Spoelstra’s team crapped out, snake eyes of a lost opportunity the ultimate result of a 117-108 loss to the Orlando Magic at Kia Center. So on to the NBA Cup and the Vegas Strip for the Magic, and back to the regular season for the Heat. “There was something to play for,” Spoelstra said. “We just weren’t able to...

ORLANDO – Don’t try telling Heat coach Erik Spoelstra that the stakes will be higher when his team returns Tuesday to Kia Center for an NBA Cup game. Friday night against the Orlando Magic still counted plenty, considering the Heat were coming off Wednesday night’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks at the start of this two-game trip, with losses in two of their previous three. Keeping an upstart up means keeping pace in the win column. This time, though, untimely turnovers, missed free throws, a lack of 3-point volume and a miss at the buzzer meant a 106-105 loss. Even with 24 points and 15...

MIAMI – Erik Spoelstra began the night by attempting to cast the matchup as a study in intestinal fortitude, the Los Angeles Clippers with losses in 13 of their previous 15, his Heat coming off a physical loss to the Detroit Pistons. “You have two opposing forces,” a stoic Spoelstra said. “That’s competition and who’s going to get to who.” Um, yeah, or you could just make a whole bunch of 3-pointers early, push the lead to 38and hold on from there for a 140-123 victory. So with those 3s, plus three runaway quarters, now a 14-7 record after concluding a 3-1 homestand by holding off a late...

MIAMI – Nothing about the Miami Heat’s first 17 games was about hero ball, with an equal-opportunity approach fueling unexpected early-season success. The past two games, however, have been a different story, with Herro ball both needed and impactful. Leading the Heat in scoring for the second time in as many appearances since returning from September ankle surgery, Tyler Herro’s 29 points proved essential in Wednesday night’s 106-103 victory over the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Milwaukee Bucks at Kaseya Center. The win not only lifted the Heat to 13-6 and extended the Heat’s winning streak...