Darko Rajakovic praises Brandon Ingram, the bench for reinforcements against the Heat

Darko Rajaković praised Brandon Ingram and a big-play passing bench in Toronto The Raptors beat the Miami Heat 106-96 on Monday night.

Ingram had an impressive showing against the Heat’s defense. In 38 minutes of action, he finished with 28 points, five rebounds, five assists and a block. He shot 9-of-19 from the field, including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, and 5-of-5 from the free throw line.

The the bench players also impressed in their time on the court, scoring 33 points while shutting out Miami’s second unit. Rajaković praised both sides after the match, reports reporter Omer Osman.

“He is very consistent. He gets to his spots on the floor. He has really good shots. He shot the ball well, played defense very engaged. I think he played a really great game for us,” Rajakovic said.

“We need everybody. We’re not going to win if we have 3 guys and play good basketball. Seeing the contributions of Grady, CMB on defense, Sandro was great, Jamal changed the game every time he stepped on the court.”

Darko on Brandon Ingram’s consistency:

“He’s very consistent. He gets to his spots on the floor. He hits really good shots.”

“He shot the ball well, played defense very engaged. I think he played a really great game for us.” https://t.co/vZGmHneC4V pic.twitter.com/n2T2M9uurt

— Omer Osman (@OmerOsman200) December 16, 2025

As Brandon Ingram, the Raptors played against the Heat

Brandon Ingram and the bench certainly deserved the praise of Darko Rajakovic, who helped the Raptors take down the Heat.

The game was close between both teams as the score was 77-74 in the fourth quarter. Toronto had the last laugh outscoring Miami 32-19 in the final 12 minutes of the game.

Perimeter shooting and ball movement made the difference in this matchup. The Raptors won in both categories, making 16 triples and 33 assists. It wasn’t the same for the Heat as they made just nine 3-pointers and 20 assists.

Five players scored in double figures for Toronto in the win, including Ingram. Scotty Barnes had a solid performance of 17 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, three blocks and two steals. He shot 8-of-16 overall, including 1-of-4 from downtown. Next is Immanuel Quickley with 15 points and four assists, Sandro Mamukelasvili with 11 points and seven rebounds, and Grady Dick with 10 points and two steals.

Toronto improved to 16-11 on the season, holding third place in the Eastern Conference standings. They are 0.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic, while trailing the New York Knicks by three games and the Detroit Pistons by 5.5 games.

The Raptors will look forward to their next game, staying on the road. They face the Milwaukee Bucks on December 18th at 8:00 PM ET.