In case you haven't noticed, Justise Winslow is pretty good.

The Miami Heat guard got his 2019-20 NBA campaign off to a bang on Wednesday night, pouring in 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in a blowout win over the Memphis Grizzlies (with Jimmy Butler sidelined).

But what's most interesting about Winslow is the fact that he was doing a whole lot of ball handling.

The 23-year-old is actually interested in playing point guard for the long haul, which is something many may not have expected a few years ago.

Remember: when Winslow was first drafted, he was viewed as a defensive specialist who couldn't really shoot. The Heat were able to live with that, because Winslow was (and still is) truly elite on the defensive end.

But during the 2017-18 campaign, Winslow began to develop a perimeter shot, shooting 38 percent from 3-point range, albeit on low volume (1.9 attempts per game). It proved to be a sign of things to come, as the Duke product then made 37.5 percent of his triples last year.

Fast-forward to opening night this season, and Winslow went 1-for-2 from deep, but connected on 10 of his 21 shots overall and went 6-of-9 from the free-throw line.

Obviously, Miami would like to see Winslow be more efficient from the charity stripe (he is a lifetime 64.5 percent free-throw shooter), but the fact that he got there so regularly in Game 1 is very encouraging.

Of course, we shouldn't jump to conclusions, as it is just one game. Winslow almost surely won't be averaging 27 points per game this season, but the fact that he is comfortable with taking on more responsibility (and Erik Spoelstra seems to be on board with it) is a great sign.

If Winslow can even become consistently decent on the offensive end of the floor (and based on his plus-3.1 offensive net rating last season, the evidence is there that he can), he will be quite the force, as we already know how terrific he is defensively.

I have always thought of Winslow as a Marcus Smart type, and the two players are following similar trajectories: early defensive specialists who slowly grew their offensive games and are now suddenly very useful offensive guards.

What I love most about Winslow (just like Smart) is his toughness and stick-to-itiveness. If he has a poor shooting night, it doesn't bother him. He just gets ready for the next game.

Now, if he can continue to cultivate his playmaking ability and develop into a real point guard for the Heat? He is going to be a truly lethal player and a franchise cornerstone.

We are in an era of basketball where people no longer just look at points per game as the primary stat to judge a player's value (let's face it: that was always silly). Guys like Winslow are helping to buck that trend.

Again, Winslow will probably never put up huge numbers over the course of an 82-game campaign, but his impact on both ends of the floor is undeniable.

If Miami is going to be a legitimate playoff team in the Eastern Conference this season, Winslow will be a pivotal reason why.