Sports
Raptors look for payback when they host Heat
Nov 29, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) looks to pass the ball as Toronto Raptors guard Ja’Kobe Walter (14) defends during the second half in an NBA Cup game at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images The Toronto Raptors open a seven-game homestand Sunday night with a chance to avenge a loss to the Miami Heat in a return match.
The Raptors fell to the Heat 121-111 Friday night in an NBA Cup game to conclude a 1-3 road trip. Afterward, Toronto coach Darko Rajakovic said that he was looking forward to the rematch.
“I’m really, really excited because we’re going to play the same team in less than 48 hours, so it’s going to be a mini-playoff series,” Rajakovic said. “We’re going to watch film, learn from it and get better.”
A player from each team had a triple-double on Friday. Miami’s Bam Adebayo had 14 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the eighth triple-double of his career. Toronto’s Scottie Barnes had 24 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the sixth of his career.
The Raptors should take comfort in playing at home, where they are 4-4. The Heat, who have won four of their past five games and two in a row, are 5-4 on the road.
RJ Barrett led Toronto with 25 points on Friday while Jakob Poeltl added 24 points and 10 rebounds.
The Heat took over the game on Friday with a 38-23 third quarter after trailing by three points at halftime.
Toronto still led 79-77 with 4:23 to play in the third, but the frame ended with Miami leading 96-84.
“We know what we’re capable of when we play the right way,” said Miami’s Jimmy Butler, who had eight of his 26 points in the third quarter. Tyler Herro had nine of his 23 points in the third. Reserve Jaime Jaquez Jr. had eight of his season-best 15 points in the third quarter.
“It was the second part of the third quarter that we just could not hold it,” Rajakovic said. “They started getting hot, making shots. They ended up the game with 21 threes.”
Toronto had 11 3-pointers and also committed 19 turnovers leading to 27 points. Miami committed 10 turnovers leading to 14 points.
“Our (19) to their (10) turnovers and their 3-point shooting and our 3-point shooting, that was the biggest difference in the game,” Rajakovic said.
Rajakovic feels that the turnovers can be corrected with better passing on fast breaks. “We were trying to punish them in transition and some of those passes were not precise enough,” he said.
Adebayo has had two consecutive games with 10 assists and 10 rebounds.
“We want to take advantage of (Adebayo’s passing) as much as possible and want him to be aggressive, put pressure on the defense at the rim,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He’s managing that extremely well. That probably puts a lot of pressure on teams scouting against us when Bam gets double-digit assists. A lot can go wrong for your defense when he’s in play-making mode.”
“That’s what it’s all about, trying to get easy looks (for teammates),” Adebayo said.
“He’s getting everyone the ball in position where they can score,” Butler said.
Jaquez hit two 3-pointers during Miami’s 19-5 late-third-quarter surge.
“We want (Jaquez) to be aggressive,” Spoelstra said. “Part of that aggressiveness, there is a lot of responsibility to make the right read and bring a second defender. If he continues to get to his spots, teams will do that. He was assertive on his catches. He has been working diligently on his shooting.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Fresh off play-in win, Suns take on top-seeded Thunder
Apr 17, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green (4) celebrates after a slam dunk against the Golden State Warriors during the first half in the play-in rounds of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Phoenix Suns come into their first-round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder with some momentum after knocking off the Golden State Warriors in the play-in finale Friday to earn the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.
The Thunder haven’t played in a week heading into Sunday’s Game 1 of the series in Oklahoma City.
After letting a big lead slip away in the play-in opener against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Suns bounced back with a 111-96 home win over the Warriors.
Jalen Green was one of the biggest factors in Phoenix advancing, with 36 points in Friday’s victory.
“They’re going to come in, play hard, play their game, but I think if we bring the same energy that we brought (Friday night) and getting stops, playing defense, getting out and running, we can use that to our advantage,” Green said, looking forward to facing Oklahoma City. “It should be a good series.”
The Thunder are looking to become the first team since Golden State in 2017-18 to repeat as champions.
“It’s an opportunity,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I think just going through last year and realizing that’s so far down the line. So many things are going to happen before we get to the Finals clinching game. … So many things have to go our way that aren’t in our control and so many things we have to control that are hard to control at this level for a long period of time for us to have that opportunity.”
Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren said there’s value in having the experience, but that his team can’t take any team lightly.
“You have to try to carry over the experiences that you learn from, but you can’t carry over the result, because the result means absolutely nothing,” Holmgren said. “If you’re sitting here in the playoffs saying, ‘Oh, we won last year,’ that’s not going to win you a playoff series or a game or get a stop on a possession.”
The series features two of the best defenses in the league.
The Thunder had the NBA’s best defensive rating, allowing just 106.5 points per 100 possessions during the regular season while the Suns were ninth at 112.9.
In Friday’s win, Phoenix scored 30 points off Golden State turnovers to help fuel the win, while Oklahoma City led the league with 22.0 points per game off turnovers during the season. The Thunder also limited opponents to just 14.7 points per game off turnovers, second-best in the NBA.
The Thunder won three of the five regular-season matchups between the teams, with Phoenix being one of just three teams to hand Oklahoma City multiple losses this season.
The teams closed the regular season against each other, though that game — a 32-point Suns win — will bear little resemblance to Sunday’s matchup.
With their playoff/play-in positions set, both teams sat most of their starters, with the Thunder’s only regular starter to play being Luguentz Dort.
Phoenix was without Grayson Allen (hamstring) and Mark Williams (foot soreness) for Friday’s win.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Experienced Lightning face young Canadiens in first round
Apr 9, 2026; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak (81) vies for position with Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky (20) during the second period at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images The Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning will meet in the postseason for the first time since 2021 and this matchup will come under much different circumstances.
Game 1 in the first-round series is set for Sunday at Tampa, Fla.
Holding the Atlantic Division’s second spot, the Lightning clinched home-ice advantage Tuesday night when the third-place Canadiens lost 4-2 in their regular-season finale against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Tampa Bay right winger Nikita Kucherov produced 130 points (44 goals, 86 assists) in 76 games, falling eight short of Art Ross Trophy winner Connor McDavid, who produced 138 points while playing in all 82 matches for the Edmonton Oilers.
In a season that may produce a second Vezina Trophy, goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy went 39-15-4 to lead the NHL in wins. He had a 2.31 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage.
Jon Cooper’s Lightning won the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021, the latter in the Finals over the Canadiens when conference alignment was ditched in an adjusted playoff format because of the pandemic.
The Lightning’s title run was interrupted by three straight Cup appearances and two championships by the archrival Florida Panthers.
“Everybody’s looking for something new, right? For somebody new to win or somebody new to come along,” Cooper said. “But what’s wrong with the team that wants to sit there and maybe throw (the word) ‘dynasty’ around. That’s what we’re looking at.”
A pending unrestricted free agent, defenseman Darren Raddysh had a breakout year running the power play, producing a career-best 22 goals, a franchise record, to go with 48 assists that will lead to a hefty contract in the summer.
The availability of defenseman Victor Hedman, who has not played since March 19, is uncertain.
While Tampa Bay has played in six conference finals and made four trips to the Final under Cooper, coach Martin St. Louis will send out a group of youthful Canadiens that represent early success from a rebuild.
Montreal suits up the NHL’s youngest club with an average just shy of 26 years old, ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks and Buffalo Sabres.
The first-round matchup is a classic one of veteran core players versus talented youngsters.
Cole Caufield, 25, produced 51 goals in 81 games, while 22-year-old Juraj Slafkovsky, the No. 1 overall pick in 2022, had 30 tallies and 73 points in 82 matches.
Star defenseman Lane Hutson, also 22, had 12 goals and 66 assists as one of 11 Canadiens to reach double figures in goals.
The squad’s 26-year-old captain from London, Ontario, Nick Suzuki had a career year in becoming the fifth Montreal player to register 100 points, posting 29 goals and 72 helpers en route to a second straight playoff appearance.
Guy Lafleur, Peter Mahovlich, Steve Shutt and most recently Mats Naslund in 1986 hit the century mark.
Suzuki, who played against the Lightning in the 2021 Final, said the Habs have grown since losing in five games to the Washington Capitals a year ago.
“We’ve built our game throughout the whole season, learning different things, individually and as a team,” said Suzuki, who missed Wednesday’s practice to attend the birth of his daughter, Maya. “We’re in a much better spot that we were last year in the playoffs. We’ve matched up well against (the Lightning) the last couple of years.
“There’s no intimidation.”
Montreal went 2-1-1 against Tampa Bay including two victories in the campaign’s final nine games.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Donovan Mitchell nets 32 as Cavaliers overpower Raptors
Apr 18, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) drives to the basket against Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram (3) during the first quarter of game one in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points and James Harden added 22 points and 10 assists, powering the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 126-113 victory over the visiting Toronto Raptors in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first round series Saturday.
Max Strus had 24 points off the bench and Evan Mobley scored 17 for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers, who have won 11 straight playoff games over the Raptors. Game 2 is Monday in Cleveland, where Toronto is 0-8 all-time in the postseason.
Mitchell extended his league-record streak of scoring 30-plus points in a series opener to nine straight, two more than Michael Jordan had on two occasions. The Cavaliers’ largest lead was 100-76 early in the fourth quarter on a Sam Merrill 3-pointer.
RJ Barrett scored 24 points and Scottie Barnes contributed 21 points and seven assists for the fifth-seeded Raptors. Brandon Ingram added 17 points and Jamal Shead had 17 points in his playoff debut, starting for injured guard Immanuel Quickley (right hamstring strain).
Harden became the fifth player in NBA history to appear in a playoff game in 17 seasons, joining Karl Malone, John Stockton, Tony Parker and Jason Kidd. He also moved past Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird into 13th place in playoff points with 3,917.
Strus made back-to-back 3-pointers and followed with a layup in transition, giving the Cavaliers a commanding 82-60 lead midway through the third. Mitchell recorded 11 points in the period, which saw Toronto held to five made field goals.
Cleveland held a 61-54 advantage at the half, fueled by Harden’s 15 points and six assists and Mitchell’s 13 points and four assists. The Raptors had four players in double figures with Ingram scoring 13 points and Barnes, Barrett and Shead with 11 apiece.
Mitchell had eight points and a pair of assists in the first quarter, including a strip of Shead that he turned into a Strus’ layup at the buzzer and a 35-31 Cavaliers lead. Ingram and Barnes scored nine apiece.
Both teams shot the ball well, but the Cavs buried 16 of 32 from 3-point range. They also enjoyed a significant advantage at 52-36 for points in the pain.
Cavaliers backup center Thomas Bryant (left calf strain) was inactive and has not played since April 5.
–Field Level Media
Fresh off play-in win, Suns take on top-seeded Thunder
Experienced Lightning face young Canadiens in first round
