Nunn turns in strong showing
Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 111-102 win over the Toronto Raptors (5-9) on Wednesday at Amalie Arena in Tampa to begin a four-game trip and improve to 6-7 this season:
After a slow start to his second NBA season, Heat guard Kendrick Nunn has now put together two consecutive encouraging performances.
Nunn followed up an 18-point performance in Monday’s win over the Detroit Pistons with 28 points on 9-of-12 shooting, eight rebounds and five assists in 35 minutes off the bench Wednesday.
Nunn turned in a really strong second quarter against the Raptors, scoring 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the period.
Before this two-game stretch, Nunn was averaging just 5.5 points on 40 percent shooting and 1.7 assists in limited playing time this season.
But in two games this week, Nunn has looked more like the player who made the All-Rookie First Team and finished second in the voting for the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award last season.
High-turnover performances
have hurt the Heat’s offensive efficiency, but Miami has been one of the league’s top shooting teams this season.
Miami entered Wednesday with the NBA’s fourthbest team shooting percentage at 48.6 percent.
That continued Wednesday as the Heat overcame a 19-turnover night with 48.8 percent shooting from the field and 18of-40 shooting on threes.
The Heat entered averaging a league-high 18.3 turnovers and with a league-worst 17.8 percent turnover rate this season. Those empty possessions have resulted in Miami attempting an NBA-low 81.6 shots.
Center Bam Adebayo did not have a standout shooting night with 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting, but he still finished with 13 rebounds and seven assists.
Heat forward Duncan Robinson put together one of the best shooting seasons in NBA history last season, and he’s already proving he’s far from a one-season wonder.
Robinson’s three-point shooting was an efficient offensive weapon again Wednesday, as he finished with 14 points on 4-of-6
shooting on threes.
It’s the continuation of a strong start for Robinson, who entered averaging 14.8 points while shooting 44.7 percent from threepoint range on 8.6 threepoint shot attempts in the first 12 games.
The Raptors’ offense produces a lot of threepoint shot attempts, but not enough went in Wednesday.
Toronto, which entered Wednesday shooting 37.3 percent on a league-high 43.1 three-point shot attempts this season, shot 16 of 49 (32.7 percent) from
three-point range against Miami.
Wednesday marked Tyler Herro’s 21st birthday. It also marked the third consecutive game Herro has missed because of neck spasms.
Herro traveled with the Heat to Tampa for the start of its four-game trip, but he wasn’t ready to return from injury Wednesday. Before the game, coach Erik Spoelstra said he didn’t have a new update on the second-year guard’s status, “other than he’s making progress.”
The Heat also remained
without wing Jimmy Butler (health and safety protocols), guard Avery Bradley (health and safety protocols) and center Meyers Leonard (left shoulder strain).
Butler, Bradley and Leonard did not travel with the Heat to Tampa. It’s unclear whether they will join the team at any point during the trip, which continues Friday with another game against the Raptors before coming to an end with two straight games against the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday and Monday.