Miami Heat third-year wing Derrick Jones Jr. is definitely one of the most outstanding dunkers in the NBA today. So much so that whenever he takes off for a jam, his teammates expect nothing less than another spectacular highlight-reel type of play.
Such is the burden of a dunk specialist, and Jones recently explained why simple dunks are no longer acceptable for his Heat teammates:
“My teammates, they have this little thing that if I have a fast break and if I do a simple dunk, then I'm in trouble,” Jones said with a smile, via Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. “I mean, I don't understand why it's like that with me and not with Bam or J-Rich or J-Dub, because they're athletes, too.
“You all don't see it, but I see it. They can jump out of the gym. But they just don't like it when I do simple dunks on a break. So I told Bam just throw the ball up as high as he can.”
Jones was referring to his amazing alley-oop jam against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday. Aforementioned teammate Bam Adebayo threw up a pretty terrible alley-oop pass that was way behind Jones, but the latter's athleticism and freaky hops allowed him to finish the play in absolutely emphatic fashion.
Jones scored only four points in the 125-104 blowout loss, going 2-of-4 from the floor in 24 minutes off the bench, so the remarkable alley-oop was definitely the highlight of his evening.
Fortunately for the Heat, the Orlando Magic also lost on Sunday, and Miami still remains one game ahead of the Magic and the Charlotte Hornets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East.
Follow Us
Subscribe