FLORIDA, 3 October 2020, (Reuters): Heavy favorites Los Angeles Lakers dismantled the Miami Heat 116-98 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, as their opponent struggled with injuries after making a fast start.

The Heat got a 13-point leg up in the first quarter but the lead was shortlived, as the Lakers drained 11 three-pointers to complete a 30-point turnaround and close out the first half, while Miami's defense crumbled inside the NBA's quarantined Orlando, Florida, campus.

The Lakers kept the pressure up as two of the Heat's biggest playmakers - point guard Goran Dragic and forward Bam Adebayo - exited the game with injuries.

Dragic, Miami's leading scorer in the post-season, suffered a foot injury in the second quarter, while Adebayo left in the third with a shoulder strain after twice colliding with Lakers center Dwight Howard.

"We came out slow," said Lakers forward Anthony Davis, the night's leading scorer with 34 points. "(If)we want to win this series and become champions we have to play better from the start."

Sixteen-time All-Star LeBron James, competing in his 50th NBA Finals game, scored 25 points with 13 rebounds and nine assists.

The Heat's All-Star forward Jimmy Butler rolled his ankle and fell to the ground grabbing his left leg with seconds left on the clock in the second quarter and was seen limping on the court afterward, but managed to finish the game, putting up 23 points.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama, 15-time All-Star Shaquille O’Neal and legend Kareem Abdul-Jabar were spotted among the game’s virtual fans in the otherwise empty stands in the biosecure “bubble” at Walt Disney World, where players have been living and competing – isolated from the outside world – since July.

The evening's event was laced with activism, as players warmed up prior to the game in t-shirts that read "VOTE" and Obama used the opportunity - from his virtual seat - to thank a group of first-time poll workers who signed up to work on the United States' Nov. 3 election day.

"I appreciate you and hopefully all NBA fans will appreciate you when they see those shorter lines at the polling places," Obama said in a video posted to his Twitter account.

Commissioner Adam Silver told reporters Wednesday that he was initially resistant to the idea of the quarantine, which required "extraordinary sacrifices by everyone involved" but was largely a success, with no positive COVID-19 cases among players.

ROME, 16 September 2020 (TON): Italian teenager Lorenzo Musetti upset three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka 6-0, 7-6 (2) in the first round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia on Tuesday for his first ATP Tour triumph.

The 18-year-old Musetti lost his only previous tour-level match before stunning the 10th-seeded Swiss veteran on the clay courts of Rome in one hour and 24 minutes.

"First set was almost perfect. Second set he tried to play better," Musetti said. "He was focused on the match and he wanted to win the set, but I served really good. ... I think the serve was the key."

Musetti tallied five aces and zero double faults and won 69 percent of his first-service points in a matchup of the tournament's youngest and oldest players.

After losing the first eight games of the match, the 35-year-old Wawrinka overcame an early break in the second set to get back on serve.

Musetti, ranked No. 249 in the world, finished off his victory in the tiebreak with a cross-court forehand passing shot. He became the first player born in 2002 to win a match on the ATP Tour.

He will face Japan's Kei Nishikori in the second round.

"I have seen him play on television and I know he is a very tough player," Musetti said. "I'm going to enjoy the victory before I start thinking about my match against Nishikori."

In other action Tuesday, No. 9 seed Andrey Rublev of Russia posted a 6-4, 6-4 win against Argentina's Facundo Bagnis. Rublev struck 25 winners in his 20th match win of the season.

No. 12 seed Denis Shapovalov of Canada hit 23 winners and won 12 of 15 points at the net in a 6-2, 6-3 victory against Argentina's Guido Pella.

No. 13 seed Milos Raonic of Canada advanced with a 7-6 (3), 6-2 win against France's Adrian Mannarino. Raonic smashed 12 aces, won 29 of his 31 first-service points and never faced a break point.

Other winners included Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka, Serbia's Dusan Lajovic, Spain's Pedro Martinez, Italy's Salvatore Caruso and Marco Cecchinato, Germany's Dominik Koepfer, Argentina's Federico Coria and Australia's John Millman.

Caruso will face top seed and four-time Rome champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the second round.

Millman rallied from 2-4 down in the second set to defeat Joao Sousa 7-5, 7-6 (2) in two hours and four minutes.

CANADA, 16 September 2020m (TON): NBA Rookie of the Year Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies was the leading vote getter for the 2019-20 All-Rookie first team, the league announced Tuesday.

Morant received 200 points in the voting among sportswriters and broadcasters. He was just ahead of Miami Heat guard Kendrick Nunn (197 points), who was also on the first team. Rounding out the five-player squad was Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke, New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson and Golden State Warriors forward Eric Paschall.

The 21-year-old Morant, a Murray State product who was the No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, averaged 17.8 points, 7.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds in 67 regular-season games. He shot 47.7 percent from the field and 33.5 percent from beyond the arc.

Nunn, who played in the NBA G League last season, averaged 15.3 points and 3.3 assists in 67 games. Clarke, the No. 21 overall selection, averaged 12.1 points and 5.9 rebounds; Williamson, the No. 1 overall selection, averaged 22.5 points with 6.3 rebounds in just 24 games; while Paschall, a second-round selection, averaged 14.0 points with 4.6 rebounds.

It was the first time the Grizzlies placed two players on the first team since Pau Gasol and Shane Battier earned the honors in the 2001-02 season. Nunn was the first Heat player to earn first-team rookie honors since Michael Beasley in 2008-09.

The all-rookie second team included three guards: Tyler Herro of the Heat, Terence Davis II of the Toronto Raptors and Coby White of the Chicago Bulls. Two forwards named to the second team were P.J. Washington of the Charlotte Hornets and Rui Hachimura of the Washington Wizards.

Only games before the stoppage of play in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic were considered. Not all teams were included in the league's restart just outside of Orlando, Fla.