MINNEAPOLIS —Dwyane Wade had 32 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, LeBron James shrugged off a sore left knee to score 20 points and grab 10 rebounds, and the Heat earned their franchise-record 15th straight victory with a 97-81 win over the Timberwolves last night.
James played 35 minutes despite being listed as a game-time decision with a twisted left knee.
The Heat had every reason to sit James down in this one, and the runaway favorite for MVP wouldn’t have been blamed. The Heat were playing the second game of a road back-to-back, coming off a stirring victory over the Knicks and playing an undermanned opponent that had lost 21 of its last 25 games.
James tweaked his knee in the third quarter against the Knicks on Sunday when he landed awkwardly while chasing down a lob pass.
His knee was examined once the team arrived in Minnesota and no serious damage was found. He tested his knee out in warmups and was considered a game-time decision, and the Timberwolves had a faint glimmer of hope when James was nowhere to be found when the Heat took the floor about 15 minutes before tipoff. But he came jogging out a few minutes later, then continued his recent pregame routine of throwing down monster dunks to get that knee loosened up and ready to roll.
“His leg would probably have to fall off for him to miss a game,” Heat forward Chris Bosh said.
Derrick Williams had 25 points and 10 rebounds and Ricky Rubio had 14 points, eight assists, six steals and five rebounds for the Timberwolves. J.J. Barea had four points on 1-for-11 shooting and was ejected in the fourth quarter after getting a Flagrant-2 foul for a hit on Heat guard Ray Allen.
Minnesota was down six points with eight minutes to play when Barea was ejected. The Heat then went on a 17-5 run to put away the game.
Officials initially ruled it a Flagrant 1, but changed the call upon reviewing it, eliciting strong protests from Barea and Wolves coach Rick Adelman.