Raptors edge out Heat behind Fred VanVleet shooting clinic

The Miami Heat entered Monday ranked fourth in the Eastern Conference and sat 5 ¹⁄₂ games back from the second-seeded Toronto Raptors. They weren’t able to gain any ground though, as Fred VanVleet’s excellent shooting powered Toronto to a 107-103 victory.

VanVleet tallied 34 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists while shooting 7-for-12 from beyond the arc to tally a game-high 48.25 DKFP. He also made the most of his time at the free throw line by making all 11 of his attempts at the charity stripe. He paced all player in playing time with 39 minutes. VanVleet didn’t do it all along though, as Lowry and Pascal Siakam also eclipsed 30 DKFP.

Goran Dragic surprisingly led the way for Miami with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists to tally 40.25 points. Jimmy Butler did a little bit of everything as usual by notching 36.75 DKFP with 16 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds. Kelly Olynyk has been a human flamethrower in the bubble and ranked third among all Heat players in DKFP (31) after scoring 20 against the Nuggets in his last outing. The big man racked up 17 points and made four shots from deep against Toronto.

Bam Adebayo was busted and only tallied 29 DKFP. The Heat’s All-Star center only took eight shots in the contest.