The Miami HEAT fell to the Golden State Warriors 97-80 Monday night at Oracle
Arena. James Johnson led the way for the HEAT with 21 points.
1. JJ Empties The Tank
In a big-time game against the defending champs, Johnson was locked-in from the
very moment he stepped onto the floor. He not only initiated offense and handled
the ball as usual, but he also knocked down a bunch of shots from the perimeter.
Of course, he answered the call on the defensive end, too, and competed hard
against both Draymond Green and Kevin Durant throughout the contest.
That said, you can’t forget about this impressive block on Steph Curry in the
first quarter:
Long story short, Johnson did all he could. In addition to his 21 points on
7-of-15 shooting, he also led the team with nine rebounds, six assists and three
steals. Talk about stuffing the stat sheet.
2. Dragic Sticks With It
Regardless of what was going on around him, Goran Dragic kept his composure, put
his head down and attacked the basket with purpose.
Naturally, his best play of the night came on a superb finish in transition
despite being fouled by Green:
Dragic finished with 19 points, four assists and three boards.
3. J. Rich Not Fazed
Remember Josh Richardson’s defensive activity against the Clippers? Well, he did
more of the same versus the Warriors. Throughout the night, Richardson made
things very tough on Curry, Klay Thompson and Shaun Livingston.
For proof, just take a look at these impressive plays:
Curry, Thompson and Livingston shot a combined 12-of-40 from the field (30
percent).
In all, Richardson tallied six points, three steals and two blocks.
Other Takeaways:
-Bam Adebayo entered the game in the third quarter and made an instant impact.
From a block on Curry, which lead to a finish for Johnson on the other end…
…to an impressive and-one finish…
…the rookie looked good.
When it was all said and done, the former Kentucky Wildcat tallied three points,
six rebounds and two blocks.
Game Note:
-Dion Waiters (birth of daughter), Rodney McGruder (left tibia surgery), A.J.
Hammons (Sioux Falls assignment) and Matt Williams Jr. (Sioux Falls assignment)
were inactive.
Looking Ahead:
-The HEAT will now head to Phoenix to face the Suns on Wednesday at 9:00 PM.
Miami won’t be back in action at the AmericanAirlines Arena until Nov. 15
against the Washington Wizards. Tickets for that game can be found here.
Player: Bam Adebayo
Player: Goran Dragic
Player: James Johnson
Player: Josh Richardson
Media Content: http://www.nba.com/heat/newsrecap/heat-80-warriors-97-game-recap
Media Keywords: NBA, Sports, Miami Heat, Bam Adebayo, Goran Dragic, James
Johnson, Josh Richardson, Miami Heat
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Taxonomy: Game Recap
Story Link: http://www.nba.com/heat/newsrecap/heat-80-warriors-97-game-recap
