The Miami Heat have overcome their early season wobbles to become one of the NBA’s best teams, but they are a long way from the finished article.
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Carrying a 43-17 record into Thursday night’s home game against Florida rivals Orlando and seemingly in command with a 24-point lead in the third quarter, LeBron James and the Heat allowed the Magic to battle back and claim a 99-96 victory.
While Dwight Howard led Orlando on the interior, scoring 14 points and grabbing 18 rebounds, Jason Richardson torched the Heat from outside and finished with 24 points.
He had 11 to ignite a 40-9 run that left the visitors on top 89-82 in the final frame.
Richardson made all five of his shots from long range after half-time.
“I’ve been a part of games like this one before, but this one is special,” Richardson said.
Chris Bosh and James ended up trying to make three-pointers in the final seconds but missed as Orlando claimed a famous triumph.
With the defeat, Miami fell two games behind Boston for the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Orlando are fourth in the East, two and a half games adrift of Chicago.
Read the full article at FIBA.com.
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