When he agreed to join the Miami Heat last year, Dion Waiters addressed the team’s need for a reliable shooting guard, especially with the departure of Dwyane Wade that time. He has proven that he can score in bunches, and is not afraid to take on big shots, even with the game on the line. However, Erik Spoelstra recently revealed how he views him as a player, and said he sees him as a “young playmaker” as well.
It can be argued that Waiters has made a name for himself as a scorer more than setting his teammates up, but the veteran head coach gave him a lot of credit for having a better understanding now of using his strengths to his advantage. Spoelstra also added, via Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, what his observations on Waiters were during their win on Wednesday against the Chicago Bulls.
“I view Dion as a young playmaker,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Now he has the ball in his hands more than he's had previously in his career. That comes with great responsibility. You have to make the best play for the team. I think one of his best strengths right now is playmaking.”
“He can score, but what he does at a high level is set up teammates and I think he is gaining a better understanding of that where his strength zones are. The other night he was able to get to the rim quite a bit. He has that ability, as well.”
Through seven games, the 25-year-old Syracuse product is averaging career high numbers of 16.0 points and 1.1 steals, to go along with 3.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 32.7 minutes per game. More importantly, Waiters has allowed Spoelstra and his coaching staff to field in more combinations on the floor, as he has shown a lot of versatility in his game, and his improved playmaking skills.
With the Heat still in search of finding consistency, they may need Waiters to step up his game further in order to string a few wins together. After missing out on the playoffs last season due to a tiebreaker, the South Beach team will definitely give it their all this year to avoid that from happening again, and will rely heavily on their promising shooting guard to be one of their leaders on and off the court.
Follow Us
Subscribe