Kel’el Ware pulls off a historic feat against the Knicks

The Miami Heat didn’t get the result they wanted on Sunday, falling 132–125 to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, but Kel’el Ware still gave fans a performance for the ages.

The 21-year-old had the best night of his career, scoring 28 points and 19 rebounds while shooting 11-of-15 overall and 5-of-7 from three-point range. The postgame stat adjustment took one jump, but Ware still made history as the Heat’s first player with 28 points, 19 rebounds and five triples in one game. In the entire league, only eight players have ever reached those thresholds in a single game, and no player has done it more than once.

The Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns was the most recent player to reach those numbers, which made Ware’s feat against him all the more remarkable. Ware’s performance came over a three-game stretch in which he averaged 24.7 points and 15.0 rebounds while going 11-for-14 from beyond the arc.

Ware is averaging 12.5 points and 10.7 rebounds per game on 66.1 percent shooting in 29 games this season. He leads the Heat with 12 double-doubles, 12th in the NBA in that category, after recording 15 double-doubles in 64 games during his rookie season. He has now posted three straight games with at least 20 points and 12 rebounds.

His shooting growth is especially noticeable. Ware has made 45.6 percent of his three-point attempts this season, the best among all eligible NBA centers. Against New York, he consistently stretched the floor and also impacted the game inside, scoring and finishing as a lob threat. He had 14 points and nine rebounds by halftime and scored in double figures early, helping Miami open the game by shooting 6 of 8 from three.

The increased production of Ware coincided with a larger role. After playing less than 30 minutes in each of the first eight games of the season, he has averaged 31 minutes per game over the last three contests and logged a season-high 35 minutes against the Knicks.

Ware was fantastic, but Miami’s defense couldn’t keep up. New York shot 20 of 38 from three, with Jaylen Brunson scoring 47 points and Mikal Bridges adding 24. A 3-pointer by Vera and free throws by Jacquez Jr. put Miami up 120–118 later, but the comeback never materialized.

The Heat now return home to the Cassia Center to face the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday at 7:30pm EST.