Erik Spoelstra‘s Miami Heat secured a 140-138 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers on the back of a nail-biting finish in overtime. With a game-winning dunk by Andrew Wiggins off an inbounds pass with 0.4 seconds on the clock, the Heat maintained their unbeaten streak at home.
As impressive as the game was for Miami as a whole, the final play of OT stood out as truly special. However, when speaking with the media after the game, Erik Spoelstra revealed that the specific play had been a part of his playbook for the past four years.
“I’ve had that play on my card listed as CQ for 4 years,” Spoelstra said. “When it got to that point, Quinny [Chris Quinn] said we should run that. I said, you know what, there’s no better person to diagram it than the one who came up with the dang thing. So I just had him diagram the play.”
“It worked beautifully,” he continued. “I thought Norm [Norman Powell] sold it really well. Wiggs [Andrew Wiggins] made a great cut on it, and then Niko [Nikola Jovic] just put it right on the rim. Couldn’t have made a better pass. If it would have been anywhere else, it would’ve been 0.6 (seconds). So it was a great execution to get that.”
The game-winning play was truly executed to perfection. With Norman Powell, who had the hot hand, acting as bait, the Cavaliers’ defense was left scrambling on the switch. In the moment of hesitation, Andrew Wiggins made a sharp cut with Davion Mitchell setting a screen at the top of the key.
Wiggin’s cut was perfectly complemented by a pinpoint pass by Nikola Jovic, resulting in an iconic sequence and game-winner for the Heat.
ANDREW WIGGINS GAME WINNER pic.twitter.com/iNMlfrnxq2
— Shabazz 💫 (@ShowCaseShabazz) November 11, 2025
The win against the Cavs was an impressive statement for Erik Spoelstra’s squad. With the team improving to 7-4 on the season, Miami is now placed third in the East. With a three-game winning streak, the Heat look significantly stronger than several sources projected.
Erik Spoelstra Praises Kel’el Ware
Among the several key performers from Monday night’s win, Erik Spoelstra finally gave Kel’el Ware deserved recognition for his performance.
“Kel’el’s played his best game,” Spoelstra said, while discussing how teams were becoming wary of the Heat’s evolving identity this season. “Impactful plays at key moments. That’s the best game he’s ever played in a Miami Heat uniform. I don’t care what the stats are…those efforts on the glass were incredible and he was reliable defensively.”
Ware has occasionally drawn criticism from Erik Spoelstra, largely due to the high expectations the Heat head coach has of him. Against the Cavaliers, going up against the reigning DPOY Evan Mobley, the 21-year-old impressed.
Ware posted 14 points, 20 rebounds, a steal, and a block on 7-for-14 shooting from the field. Given how meaningful this performance was in helping Miami secure the win, the Heat will hope to see him build consistency moving forward.
