CLEVELAND (AP) – Andrew Bogut broke his left leg less than one minute into his Cleveland debut and the Cavaliers were outgunned 106-98 on Monday night by the surging and not-to-be-overlooked Miami Heat, who beat the NBA champions twice in three nights.
Dion Waiters scored 29 points, Goran Dragic added 21 and the Heat held off a late rally by the Cavs, who trimmed a 20-point deficit to 103-98 in the final minute. It could have gotten tighter but LeBron James missed a long 3-pointer before Waiters banked one in with 12.2 seconds left.
Kyrie Irving scored 32 and James had 30 points and 17 rebounds as Cleveland dropped to 26-7 at home.
Miami has won 19 of 23, including victories over Golden State, Houston and two over Cleveland, which now has to find another rim protector after Bogut got hurt.
The 32-year-old was on the court for just 58 seconds before going down with the injury, a devastating blow to the former No. 1 overall pick who signed with the Cavs last week to help them defend their NBA title.