Sunday, November 24, 2024

Miami Heat win Vegas Summer League title with OT victory vs. Grizzlies, former first-round pick wins MVP

Miami Heat win Vegas Summer League title with OT victory vs. Grizzlies, former first-round pick wins MVP
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USATSI

The Las Vegas Summer League concluded on Monday with a thrilling title game finish between the final two unbeaten teams at the event. The Miami Heat knocked off the Memphis Grizzlies 120-118 to claim their first summer league title behind a game-winning floater by rookie second-round pick Pelle Larsson.

The summer league overtime rules were different from a traditional NBA game, as there was a target score of 120 with an untimed clock to reach that mark. After Memphis Grizzlies forward Jake LaRavia knocked down a 3-pointer to tie the game at 118-118, Larsson converted on the other end to help the Heat finish the event with a perfect 6-0 mark.

Larsson scored 16 points for Miami, while Josh Christopher (who was picked 24th overall by the Rockets in 2021) scored a team-high 24 points and earned MVP honors for the championship game. Miami center Kel’el Ware, the No. 15 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, finished with a double-double: 21 points, 10 rebounds. Ware scored at least 11 points in all eight summer league games in Las Vegas and at the California Classic.

Miami forward Cole Swider knocked down a 3-pointer with 19.6 seconds remaining in regulation before Memphis star guard GG Jackson answered on the other end with a shot from beyond the arc to send the game to overtime. LaRavia scored a game-high 32 points, while Memphis guard Scotty Pippen Jr., the son of former NBA legend Scottie Pippen, recorded 29 points and 11 assists.

Memphis took a seven-point lead into the fourth quarter before Miami stormed back. Larsson scored four of Miami’s seven points in the overtime frame to help the organization win its first summer league championship in Las Vegas.

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