Heat too hot for Hawks with 96-90 win

The Miami Heat defeated the Atlanta Hawks 96-90 Sunday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. The game was presented by Miami Cancer Institute at Baptist Health South Florida. Tyler Johnson led the way for the Heat with 14 points.

1. Richardson Locks Things Down

Simply put, Josh Richardson did a little bit of everything against the Hawks. Whether it was handling the ball, playing off the ball, contesting shots or creating turnovers, the 24-year-old got the job done.

His most impressive sequence came at the very beginning of the third quarter when he blocked Dennis Schröder on back-to-back possessions.

Shortly after that, Richardson nailed a catch-and-shoot trey. Otherwise on the offensive end, the former Tennessee volunteer knocked down some shots from the perimeter and drew contact on attacks to the basket. In all, Richardson tallied 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting, three boards, two assists, a plus-15 rating and a team-high four blocks.

2. Winslow Shows His Versatility … As Usual

By now you should know how versatile Justise Winslow is. If not, you saw it on full display Sunday. After coming off the bench for James Johnson and mainly playing power forward in the first half, the 21-year-old was the primary ball handler late in the third quarter and early in the fourth. For a perfect example of what he can do running the offense, look no further than this tough drive at the end of the third.

On the flip side of the ball, the former Duke Blue Devil was strong on the defensive end, blocking Schröder twice and Quinn Cook once.

Winslow finished with six points on 3-of-6 shooting, eight rebounds, two assists and a plus-11 rating to go along with his aforementioned three blocks.

3. Olynyk Gets Going After Halftime

While Kelly Olynyk got off to a slow start, he settled in and made some pretty impressive plays in the second half. He hit a few outside shots and came through with a tough drive, but this pass to Wayne Ellington in the corner showed what excellent vision he has.

When it was all said and done, Olynyk had nine points on 3-of-4 shooting, eight boards and a team-high five assists.

Looking Ahead:

- The Heat will be back in action on Thursday against the Brooklyn Nets. After that, Miami will play the Magic in Orlando on Saturday before returning home to face the Hornets on Monday, 9 October.

By Joe Beguiristain for heat.com

First appeared on NBA.com Global

Raptors chew up new-look Clippers

The Toronto Raptors were in menacing mood on Sunday night as they beat the Los Angeles Clippers 121-113 in Honolulu, Hawaii. It was a solid team performance from the Raptors starting five, with a couple of key contributions from the bench.

All-Star guard Kyle Lowry led the Raps in scoring with 17 points, also adding four assists to his stat line. The other Toronto All-Star, DeMar DeRozan, scored 11 points and dished four assists as well. Congolese power forward Serge Ibaka had a strong showing with 12 points and four rebounds, center Jonas Valanciunas recorded a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double and Norman Powell dropped 16 points off the bench. Cameroonian Pascal Siakam scored five points, pulled down three boards and stole the ball three times. Nigerian-American rookie OG Anunoby didn’t play.

The Clippers welcomed a raft of new talent to the team and they slotted in well. Blake Griffin is the face of the franchise and he didn’t disappoint with 18 points and three rebounds. Clippers newbies Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams both scored 17 points apiece with Williams dishing six assists and grabbing four rebounds. Another new recruit, Patrick Beverley, weighed in with 14 points. DeAndre Jordan had a quiet night on the scoring end with six points, but he claimed nine rebounds in the contest. Also new to the Clippers’ ranks is Serbian guard Milos Teodosic, who only scored one free-throw attempt to leave him with a solitary point, but his much-vaunted passing skills were on display and he ended the game with eight assists and two steals.

By Cyrus Rogers

@cyrusjrogers on Twitter