IN THE LANE

MASTER THESPIAN: Duncan Robinson’s new podcast, The Long Shot, has proved to be a gift that keeps on giving from the Heat 3-point specialist. Included was a recent segment regarding the subtle-yet-stinging taunting of Washington Wizards center Robin Lopez. “I think it was the third quarter in Washington. Tyler goes to the basket, draws the foul,” Robinson said of teammate Tyler Herro. “He kinda, you know, does the head back, kinda leans into the call, definitely maybe manipulates a whistle a little bit. Just [a] good basketball play, smart IQ.” One that did not sit well with the Stanford-educated Lopez. “So Tyler’s at the line. Mind you, there’s no fans in Washington, like there aren’t in many arenas. So it is dead quiet,” Robinson continued. “Robin is sitting on the baseline — crisscross, applesauce, mind you — and he’s watching. He’s not in the game. He’s just sitting on the baseline. And he has a very like deep, clear voice. And it’s after the first free throw, dead silence, he goes, ‘This league is full of theatrics and thespians. Several of you are worthy of Oscar-level performances for what you’ve done tonight. You should all be embarrassed, all of you, embarrassed.” Yes, Robinson chuckled, “Just the fact, to throw ‘thespians’ into NBA-level trash talk, is just fantastic.”

ONGOING CHASE: Following that road trip, Robinson and the Heat returned for a pair of home games against the Detroit Pistons, which meant going head-to-head with former teammate Wayne Ellington in the hunt for 3-pointers. “It’s a little bit of a taste of my own medicine, I guess. Or I really should say it’s Wayne’s medicine,” Robinson said of being roaster for several of Ellington’s 10 3-pointer of those two games. “I’ve learned so much from him. Wayne’s the best. To this day, we still stay in touch and keep up. He obviously has all those same tricks that I do. So you think maybe because I know what he might be doing that I might be able to defend him. But it’s still really hard to get to.”