Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Young hopes
Amid playoffs, Celtics forward and ex-G League teammate sees bright future for Heat neophytes
BOSTON — With the Miami Heat going to a decisive Game 7 against the Boston Celtics for the second consecutive season in the Eastern Conference finals, there already was an extended reunion in play.
Turns out, there also was a reunion from the G League level, which allowed for insight into what might come next for the Heat.
With Max Strus and Gabe Vincent to become unrestricted free agents July 1, it could create the need for a new pipeline of prospects for Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.
In that regard, Justin Champagnie said the Heat might be in good, youthful hands.
Added by the Heat’s G League affiliate in January, Champagnie, the former Toronto Raptors forward, helped the Sioux Falls Skyforce advance to the G League conference finals. Among those he counted as Skyforce teammates was Heat 2022 first-round pick Nikola Jovic, as well Heat two-way players Orlando Robinson and Jamal Cain.
With Champagnie signed April 7 by the Celtics, it has meant Champagnie, Jovic, Robinson and Cain on the court for pregame drilling throughout the East finals.
“I got to see my guys again,” Champagnie said with a smile. “It’s been like seeing family all over again.”
Based on what he experienced with Robinson, Cain and Jovic in South Dakota, Champagnie said the Heat could be well positioned for the future.
In Robinson, who contributed to Heat victories during the team’s injury struggles, Champagnie said the center who went undrafted last year out of Fresno State was essentially a force of fury.
“A big bruiser,” Champagnie said. “He gets down in the paint, gets to his full offense, his little hook shot. He rebounds.
“He’s overly aggressive, so it’s kind of hard to guard O down there.”
Among the reasons Robinson went undrafted were poor metrics in athleticism testing at the pre-draft combine.
“I mean, when I played last year, I wasn’t the most athletic,” said Champagnie, alluding to questions some had about his own athleticism after going undrafted out of Pittsburgh in 2021. “I wasn’t playing over the rim. You find ways to impact the game. I think O can impact the game in multiple different ways.”
As for Cain, who went undrafted last June out of Oakland University, Champagnie said the spirit in Sioux Falls was the same as what has made Cain a likable presence in the Heat locker room.
“That’s my dog,” Champagnie said. “Me and Cain are kind of similar in the way we can do a little bit of everything. Some things he has got to work on. But I just feel like go out there and be that dog and he doesn’t back down from nobody.”
Among the concerns with Cain has been struggles to create his own offense on the wing.
“I think he has the tools to do it and the moxie to do it,” Champagnie. “He’s a workaholic. He’s always in the gym, and I think he’ll make it.”
Then there’s Jovic, the skilled neophyte big man whose time in Sioux Falls was limited by a back issue, but who came on late during the Skyforce’s playoff run.
“He’s more like a point forward to me,” Champagnie said of the 19-year-old out of Serbia. “He’s a guy who has a unique still set in that he can put the ball on the floor really well. I think if he just works on his body a little bit, he’ll set sail in the NBA. I think he’s a great player. “I love playing with him.” Champagnie said the experience in Sioux Falls was beneficial to all involved, crediting the exposure helping to lead to his opportunity with the Celtics.
“It was probably the best three months of my basketball career,” he said. “It kind of helped me get focused and it kind of instilled confidence in me when I first got there to be myself on the court
“It’s been nice seeing those guys. We’re all ready.”