Bam Adebayo blocked a Cade Cunningham runner in the lane with 1:04 to go and the host Miami Heat, after nearly blowing a 19-point lead, had to sweat out three subsequent Detroit Pistons misses to escape with a 103-102 triumph in each team’s season opener Wednesday night.
Adebayo put up a team-high 22 points while Jimmy Butler recorded a 19-point, 13-rebound double-double for the Heat, who used a 13-0 run bridging the third and fourth quarters to go up 94-75.
But Cunningham, playing for the first time in almost a year because of a stress fracture in his left leg, led a Pistons rally that nearly resulted in a shocking win over the defending Eastern Conference champs.
The comeback began with a 14-0 flurry in which Cunningham contributed two hoops and three assists, getting the Pistons within 94-89 with 6:24 to go.
Cunningham eventually accounted for the game’s final points on a 3-pointer with 1:44 left, before his short-range attempt to give Detroit a late lead was rejected by Adebayo.
Cunningham also misfired on a 3-pointer with 39.1 seconds left and Alec Burks missed on a driving floater nine seconds later.
Detroit got one final possession after a Kevin Love missed 3-pointer, but inbounding with just 2.1 seconds left, the best the Pistons could do was a 30-foot buzzer-beater attempt by Cunningham that was off the mark.
Love also put up a double-double for the Heat with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Tyler Herro had 16 points and Duncan Robinson 15.
Cunningham led all scorers with 30 points in 36 minutes while also finding time for a game-high nine assists. Teammates Jalen Duren (17 points, game-high-tying 14 rebounds) and Isaiah Stewart (14 points, game-high-tying 14 rebounds) recorded double-doubles, while Killian Hayes added 10 points.
Prize rookie Ausar Thompson struggled from the field in his NBA debut, going 1-for-7, but did manage seven rebounds, three assists and a game-high five blocked shots.
The Pistons lost despite outshooting the Heat 44.6 percent to 40.2 percent overall and outscoring the hosts 33-24 on 3-pointers.
–Field Level Media
