No current Brooklyn Nets player has spent more time with the organization than Spencer Dinwiddie. Since rejoining the team at last year's trade deadline, Dinwiddie has continued climbing up the franchise's record books.

The 10-year veteran recorded 11 assists in Saturday's win over the Miami Heat, the first of which moved him past Vince Carter for fifth place on the Nets‘ all-time assists leaders. Dinwiddie, who now trails only Jason Kidd, Kenny Anderson, Deron Williams and Darwin Cook, offered a candid response when asked about the milestone postgame.

“Shoutout Joe Harris. I think he probably got more of them than anybody,” he said. “Him and Jarrett Allen from the past group. And then I would say probably Nic (Claxton) from this group. So [couldn't have done it] without those three, especially Joe Harris. Definitely Joe Harris.”

Dinwiddie averaged 5.3 assists with Brooklyn from 2016 to 2020. During that time, Harris was among the NBA's top floor spacers, shooting 43 percent from behind the arc and draining 590 threes.

After rejoining Brooklyn last season, Dinwiddie ranked fifth in the league in assists, averaging 9.1 per game. He dished out a career-high 16 assists during an Apr. 5 win over the Detroit Pistons. Four of those were to Harris, the lone Net remaining from his first stint in Brooklyn, with the sharpshooter draining six triples in the opening period.

This season, Dinwiddie has carried the load as Brooklyn's lead ball handler with Ben Simmons and Cam Thomas sidelined for the last seven games. He's averaged 7.3 assists during that span, the 11th-most in the NBA.

“He's taking advantage of his skill set,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said of Dinwiddie's success. “We have enough shooting on the floor the majority of the time when he's out there that lanes are open for him to take advantage of getting to the paint. We’ve said all along that he has the ability to do that for us, and the choice that he's making of getting downhill has had an extreme impact on how we're playing offensively.

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“He has the ability to get downhill and find others and finish, and there's no secret he's been able to do that in the past and he can still do that for us now. So we'll continue to put him in those positions.”

Dinwiddie's ball handling and facilitation will remain a focal point of Brooklyn's offense so long as Simmons and Thomas remain sidelined.

Simmons is dealing with a nerve impingement in his surgically repaired back and will be re-evaluated this coming week. Thomas has made significant progress since suffering an ankle sprain during a Nov. 8 win over the Clippers and is expected to rejoin team activities in the coming days.