Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Waiters serves up some excitement
Veteran guard delivers 19 points, 4 assists in only 16 minutes of play
CHARLOTTE — Dion Waiters happened Wednesday night, for 16 electrifying Dion Waiters minutes.
The complete Dion Waiters, the cocksure Dion Waiters, the Dion Waiters who at the end of 2016-17 looked like the most prudent of future Miami Heat investments.
Yes, his 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting came in nothing more than a mere 108-94 preseason victory over the Charlotte Hornets at the Spectrum Center, all in the first half, his only action of the night.
But that misses the entire point of Dion Waiters, an experience built on unrelenting confidence but also requiring a physique that allows for explosiveness.
Both were there in the performance that included 4 of 5 3-point shooting and four assists.
This time, for the first time in a long time, dating to his March 2017 ankle injury, Waiters Island
again became amusement park, the thrill ride of deep jumpers, attacking play, passing with purpose and panache.
That the effort came in reserve well could be a sign of the next chapter for the 27-year-old guard, coach Erik Spoelstra utilizing him off the bench for the second time in as many exhibitions, this time even with Tuesday starting guards Jimmy Butler at Goran Dragic given the night off.
The Heat now are idle until a Monday night exhibition against the Atlanta Hawks at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Five degrees of Heat from Wednesday’s exhibition:
1. Waiters sits, sizzles: The Heat this time opened with youth in the backcourt, with first-round pick Tyler Herro at shooting guard and summer standout Kendrick Nunn at point guard.
Otherwise, it was the same starting front line as in Tuesday’s preseason opener, with Bam Adebayo and Meyers Leonard as the power rotation and Duncan Robinson at small forward.
Waiters then entered with 4 minutes, 17 seconds left in the first period, promptly draining a 3-pointer nine seconds later.
He played his initial minutes at point guard.
Herro closed with eight points on 2-of-6 shooting.
2. Some men left behind: The Heat not only sat out Butler, Dragic and Justise Winslow but left them behind in South Florida.
Butler has been dealing with an illness, while Dragic is working back from last season’s knee surgery.
“We felt that they each could get more work there,” Spoelstra said. “We left a couple of our staff members there to work with guys.
“And, to be frank, we’ve done this before in preseasons on back-to-backs. You bring everybody and then you end up having so many people in the locker room, you can’t play everybody.”
3. Earlier opportunities: Spoelstra turned to the back end of his 20-player camp roster earlier this time, with Davon Reed and Daryl Macon entering in the first quarter and then Chris Silva, Mychal Mulder, Kyle Alexander, Jeremiah Martin and KZ Okpala seeing action in the second half.
“I love guys that are fighting to get in this league and will be going to Sioux Falls and still be part of our program,” Spoelstra said of the Heat’s G League affiliate. “So I don’t want them just to have a practice experience with us. I want them to actually get in a game and compete and express themselves.”
4. Summer stories: Robinson and Nunn, the stars of the Heat’s 2018 and ’19 summer leagues, respectively, both had their moments.
For Robinson it was a rapid reversal after shooting 1 of 7 on 3-pointers, his only attempts, in Tuesday’s victory over the Spurs. This time he was 4 of 9 from beyond the arc in a 14-point effort.
For Nunn, it was an example of how he could thrive in a combo-guard role, closing with 13 points and seven assists and being particularly adept with his cuts off the ball.
5. Leonard lift: Leonard again provided a boost off on the glass, this time with seven rebounds in 15 minutes (before sitting out the second half ) after securing 11 in 22 minutes in Tuesday’s preseason-opening victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
Suddenly, those missing Hassan Whiteside rebounds might not be so difficult to replace.