The Miami Heat rallied after being down the entire first half to beat the Indiana Pacers in one of the most thrilling games of the season.
Dwyane Wade lives for these moments.
It was the final play of regulation, Tyler Johnson inbounded the ball to Wade, and the man once known as the Flash summoned that once-famous speed. No screen. No nothing. Just Wade, one of today’s premiere players Paul George, and the rim.
Wade, fearlessly, took it to him. This has been Miami’s undoing at times this season. Wade’s aging confidence and stubborness to handle the ball in the crunch time has often resulted in hi-jacked possessions and bad shots.
Not today.
Not now.
Not against the Pacers.
Wade went up for the layup and stretched and mangled his body and somehow made the layup with his left hand.
Then he looked on to the fans, who were going f*cking crazy, as if to say “are you not entertained?”
The Heat (21-13), who trailed by as many as 18 and didn’t get their first lead until 3:11 left in the fourth quarter, forced overtime against a Pacers (19-15) team they hadn’t beaten in two tries this season.
And then Wade did it again.
With 1:33 left in overtime, Wade snaked around a Chris Bosh screen with that vintage speed and got the layup to extend Miami’s lead to three. This time there was no straight face.
This time Wade let out a roar.
He’s been here before. He’s won plenty of games and has hit countless shots in crunch time but, at 33 years old, he’s still having fun with it.
To top it off, the Heat had to win the game on defense. Down three, the Pacers had 3.9 seconds left and an inbound play on their end of the court. Wade, who had played the entire overtime period and final 5:22 of the fourth quarter, played free safety.
He darted back and forth between Pacers players while Rodney Stuckey frantically tried to find one to inbound to.
He couldn’t.
Not in two tries.
Stuckey had to look to the ref for a timeout both times. Wade smiled during stoppaged. Whoo, boy, is this a good time.
Indiana finally settled on a cross court heave to George, blanketed by Justise Winslow, whose falling jumper bounced harmlessly off the rim.
What a game. What a comeback. What a treat for Heat fans and fans of basketball. That, folks, is what it’s all about.
Three stars
Dwyane Wade finished with 27 points–including two that tied the game and sent it to overtime–on 9-of-22 shooting, eight rebounds and three assists in 38 minutes.
Chris Bosh kept Miami in the game for most of it, finishing with 31 points on 8-of-20 shooting and 11 rebounds. With no Hassan Whiteside (who sat out with a leg injury), Bosh also played center for most of the fourth quarter and all of overtime.
Justise Winslow finished with just seven points and six rebounds, but he was a plus-15 and inhaled Paul George on defense in overtime. In fact, George didn’t score once in OT. He also had a huge offensive rebound on Miami’s last possession that took more time off the clock. If you ask me, he gets the game ball. What a performance from the 19 year old.
Highlights
Dwyane Wade looking like 2006 "Flash" Wade pic.twitter.com/mCwnj9raTg
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) January 5, 2016
Up next
The Miami Heat get a much deserved day off before they host the New York Knicks Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET in a nationally televised game on ESPN.