Bam Adebayo on Sunday hit a thrilling game-winner at the buzzer to lift the Miami Heat to a 109-107 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, who lost superstar Kevin Durant to another injury.
Adebayo nailed a step-back 14-footer from the baseline as the Heat snapped a three-game losing skid.
Both teams were short-handed, with the Heat playing without Jimmy Butler (sprained ankle) and the Nets already without James Harden, who has a hamstring injury.
Photo: Jim Rassol-USA Today
Durant scored Brooklyn’s first eight points before exiting the game with just under eight minutes remaining in the first quarter.
The 11-time All-Star was driving to the basket when he clashed knees with Heat forward Trevor Ariza. Durant suffered a thigh contusion.
Durant returned to the Nets’ lineup on April 7 after a 23-game absence because of a hamstring injury. He has averaged 23.8 points while playing in four of the Nets’ past five games.
“He’s sore, but we don’t know how severe it is,” Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash said.
Adebayo finished with 21 points, 15 rebounds and five assists, while Slovenia’s Goran Dragic finished with 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
Adebayo drove left, pulled up and launched a 14-footer as time expired.
Adebayo knows his role with the team, but still likes to get the green light sometimes from the bench during key moments in the game.
“He handled it the right way,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He looked over to the bench, and at that point we just made eye contact. My hands were up and it was like: ‘OK, it just better be the last shot.’”
Landry Shamet scored a career-high 30 points and made seven of 12 from beyond the arc, while Kyrie Irving chipped in with 20 points and nine assists for the Nets.
“They were playing well, hitting a lot of shots, so you’ve got to give credit, like I always say, but there were definitely some preventable plays out there that I feel like just could have been better,” Irving said.
In New York, Julius Randle finished with 33 points and 10 assists as the Knicks withstood a 34-point performance from Zion Williamson by beating the New Orleans Pelicans 122-112 in overtime.
Derrick Rose came off the bench to score a season-high 23 points, while R.J. Barrett tallied 18 as the Knicks beat the Pelicans for the second time in three games.
Both Barrett and Reggie Bullock, who had 15, contributed offensively before fouling out.
“I haven’t had this feeling in a long time, let alone be on a winning streak,” Rose said. “So I’m grateful to be in this situation.”
Williamson also had nine rebounds and five assists, while Eric Bledsoe scored 22 and Brandon Ingram added 19 for the Pelicans, who lost in overtime for the second consecutive game.
Randle nailed two free throws with just over two minutes to go in overtime to give the Knicks a 112-105 lead and New York cruised from there.
“We didn’t play great in the second half, but we found a way to win the game,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said.
In Atlanta, Georgia, Trae Young collected 34 points and 11 assists as the Hawks used a fast finish to secure a 129-117 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
Clint Capela recorded 25 points and 24 rebounds, while Kevin Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic each had 23 points for the Hawks, who have won eight of their past 10 games.
Indiana got 29 points and eight assists from Malcolm Brogdon, and 18 points and 14 rebounds from Domantas Sabonis.
T.J. McConnell came off the bench to score 18 points.
Elsewhere, the Clippers crushed the Timberwolves 124-105, the Hornets downed the Trail Blazers 109-101, the Kings defeated the Mavericks 121-107, the Raptors silenced the Thunder 112-106 and the Rockets mastered the Magic 114-110.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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