Last night, Pelle Larsson, a basketball player from Sweden, helped the Miami Heat win a game against the Washington Wizards with a score of 106 to 90. He scored 16 points, which was his best performance so far in the NBA, the big professional basketball league in the United States.
Larsson, who plays as a shooting guard (a position that focuses on scoring points by shooting the ball), got to play for 28 minutes. His 16 points were the same as the difference between the two teams’ scores. This win came after the Heat lost a close game to the New York Knicks on Sunday, 116 to 112, which went into extra time.
Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Larsson scored almost as many points as the team’s top scorer, Bam Adebayo, who got 19 points. Before this game, Larsson’s highest score was 14 points, which he made in November against the Dallas Mavericks. He also helped his team by grabbing four rebounds (catching the ball after a missed shot) and making five assists (passing the ball to a teammate who scores).
The game happened at the Kaseya Center, the Heat’s home arena. With this win, the Miami Heat now have 29 wins and 31 losses this season, placing them seventh in the Eastern Conference, a group of NBA teams from the eastern U.S. They are ahead of another Florida team, the Orlando Magic.
Larsson’s Patience Pays Off
Larsson is new to the NBA this year, called a rookie. He was first picked by the Houston Rockets in 2024 but was quickly traded (sent) to the Miami Heat. As a beginner, he hasn’t had many chances to play. Just two days ago, on March 2, he was sent to a smaller league called the NBA G-League to play for the Sioux Falls Skyforce. But the very next day, he was brought back to the Heat.
Why? Two other players, Jaime Jaquez and Davion Mitchell, got injured and couldn’t play. Coach Erik Spoelstra decided to give Larsson a chance instead. It turned out to be a smart move because Larsson played well.
After the game, Coach Spoelstra, who leads the Heat, said nice things about Larsson, who is 24 years old. “He understands what his role is,” Spoelstra said. “Some see it as something negative, we see it as something positive.” This means Larsson knows he’s not the main star yet, but he’s okay with that and keeps working hard.
So far this season, Larsson’s average stats (numbers that show how he’s doing) are 3.7 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 0.8 assists per game. But Spoelstra likes how hard Larsson tries. “He is persistent, and that’s why he gives himself the opportunity to be ready,” the coach said. “He trains two or three times a day, you have to kick him out of the gym!” This shows Larsson practices a lot and doesn’t give up, even when he’s told to stop.
