Kendrick Nunn Drops 28 as Breakout Continues in Heat’s 106-97 Win over Hawks

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The Miami Heat won their fourth game in five to start the 2019-20 season with a 106-97 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday at State Farm Arena.

A pair of rookies in Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro paced the Heat offense.

Nunn, who leads all NBA rookies in scoring, dropped 12 of his 28 points in the third quarter. Herro scored 17 points off the bench to follow up his 29-point performance against Atlanta on Tuesday.

Heat forward Jimmy Butler proved to be a problem for the Hawks offense thanks to six steals and three blocks.

The 2-3 Hawks played without Trae Young, who suffered a sprained right ankle in Atlanta's 112-97 road loss to Miami on Tuesday.

Notable Performances

Heat G Kendrick Nunn: 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting (4-of-6 from three-point range)

Heat G Tyler Herro: 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting (3-of-9 from three-point range)

Heat G/F Jimmy Butler: 5 points, 11 assists, 9 rebounds, 6 steals, 3 blocks

Hawks G Cam Reddish: 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists

Hawks G DeAndre' Bembry: 18 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists

Hawks F Jabari Parker: 23 points, 8 rebounds

Kendrick Nunn Continues Excellent Rookie Campaign

The Miami Heat may have landed one of the greatest steals in recent NBA history in Kendrick Nunn, who played three seasons at Illinois before transferring and suiting up one year for Oakland University.

The 24-year-old entered the 2018 draft with an impressive resume after finishing second in NCAA Division I in scoring (behind only Hawks point guard Trae Young) with 25.9 points per game during his lone Oakland season.

However, Nunn went undrafted and ended up playing for the G League's Santa Cruz Warriors last year. He eventually signed with the Heat in April 2019, but it wasn't too long before he started turning heads.

Per the Heat website, Nunn posted 22.0 points, 5.2 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals on a 62.4 true shooting percentage and a 25.9 usage rate in summer league. He shined in the preseason, as well, dropping 40 points against the Houston Rockets on 15-of-27 shooting.

Nunn landed in the Heat's starting lineup for Game 1, and that's where he'll stay for the foreseeable future following his excellent debut.

The rookie has found himself in great company or standing alone on individual record perches:

NBA @NBA

In the common draft era, Kendrick Nunn now has the most points (108) for an undrafted rookie over his first five games played! #NBARooks #HEATTwitter https://t.co/OxTIKSB6kA

ESPN Stats & Info @ESPNStatsInfo

Kendrick Nunn is the first player with 100 points in his first 5 career games since Kevin Durant in 2007-08 (113).

Durant was drafted 2nd overall in 2007. Nunn was undrafted. https://t.co/B2Wx2RzH4u

Tim Reynolds @ByTimReynolds

Kendrick Nunn is off to the best five-game scoring start for any Heat rookie, ever.

He already has eight tonight; if he gets to 15 tonight, he will also clinch the best six-game Heat rookie scoring start before the sixth game even begins.

On Thursday, his third-quarter performance proved to be a catalyst for the Heat's win, as his 12 points helped Miami hold a 10-point lead going into the final 12 minutes:

NBA @NBA

👏 Kendrick Nunn 👏

12 quick PTS in the 3rd, 22 total for the rookie guard on @NBAonTNT! #NBARooks #HEATTwitter https://t.co/FbUUJDMWfb

He also turned defense into offense with this steal and score:

Miami HEAT @MiamiHEAT

🔥 @nunnbetter_ getting it done on both ends of the floor! https://t.co/RRK1XYmwUu

At this point, there isn't much question that Nunn is the real deal, as Will Manso of WPLG News 10 noted:

Will Manso @WillManso

So, uh, Kendrick Nunn is the real deal, huh?

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The question is how far the Heat can go thanks to a well-rounded rotation picked from a variety of sources:

Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzz

Not only did the Heat find three good players from 13th pick (Herro), G-League (Nunn) and undrafted free agency (Silva), but they found 3 players who were ready to contribute immediately, which is even more remarkable. Not even like they had to wait for payoff.

Its season is only five games old, but Miami looks like a borderline playoff team at absolute worst thanks in part to Nunn, who is emerging as the NBA season's best story.

What's Next?

The Hawks will continue their four-game homestand on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET against the San Antonio Spurs. Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Wednesday, “there's optimism [Young] will return to the active lineup early next week.”

The Heat will return home to face the Houston Rockets on Sunday at 6 p.m.