‘Greek Freak’ Giannis still searching for first win with Miami Heat

Reigning Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg returned from a one-game absence to score 29 points and dish 11 assists as the visiting Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat 113-109 on Monday night. Giannis Antetokounmpo posted his first triple-double for the Heat — 29 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists — but Miami fell to 0-4 on the season. Flagg, who sat out Saturday due to a left shoulder injury, added six rebounds against the Heat. He shot 12 of 23 overall and 2 of 8 on 3-point attempts. Kyrie Irving, who was rested in Dallas’ previous game, posted 18 points, six rebounds and six assists. The Mavericks, who have alternated losses and wins in their four games, got 20 points and nine rebounds from P.J. Washington plus 15 points from reserve Walter Clayton Jr. Mavericks rookie first-round pick Sergio de Larrea, who was coming off a 21-point game, was held scoreless in six minutes off the bench. He left the game in the second quarter because of a right knee strain and didn’t return. Besides Antetokounmpo’s contributions, Miami got 21 points from Davion Mitchell. All-Star center Bam Adebayo was held to eight points and eight rebounds, shooting 3 of 10 from the floor, including 0 of 5 from 3-point range. Andrew Wiggins had a 3-point attempt with 31.1 seconds left that would have put the Heat on top, but the shot missed. Following a timeout, Flagg drove for a layup with 10 seconds left that made it a four-point margin. Miami didn’t lead until Tim Hardaway Jr. made a 3-pointer with 1:50 left in the first quarter. By the end of the period, the Heat were up 27-23 thanks to 52.4% shooting as compared to 29.6% for Dallas. The Heat stretched their second-quarter lead to 12 points, but Dallas went on a 17-4 run to close the half, and the Mavericks led 53-52 at intermission after a late Washington 3-pointer. Daniel Gafford’s block of Antetokounmpo’s dunk attempt was one of the quarter’s highlights. Flagg led all first-half scorers with 13 points. For Miami, Antetokounmpo had 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists by the break. Antetokounmpo got even hotter in the third quarter, scoring 13 points as the Heat went up 84-83 by the end of the period. In the fourth, Dallas surged ahead 104-97 on a Flagg three-point play with 4:52 remaining, forcing Miami to call timeout. However, the Heat could not rally, extending their losing streak.