The Miami Heat are in strange territory this season. Not in regards to their status as a legitimate title contender, something they’ve frequently enjoyed over the last five seasons. But rather when it comes to Justise Winslow, the team’s 2015 first-round draft selection, who unexpectedly slipped to Miami with the 10th pick.
The Heat don’t usually build through the draft, choosing a modus operandi that usually depends on an All-Star core with low-cost veterans as complementary role players. In the rare instance that they’ve had a rookie cornerstone on their roster, expectations have varied depending on the circumstances.
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When Dywane Wade was selected fifth overall in 2003, the team was in a short-lived rebuilding mode, following the departure of Alonzo Mourning to the New Jersey Nets.
The team was committed to a cast of secondary players that included Eddie Jones, Caron Butler and a not-quite-in-his-prime Lamar Odom — a solid group but not a transcendent player among them. Wade came in and the team had to adjust on the fly.
With Jones on the team, however, Wade was used as a boost to a weak point guard rotation. The future Hall of Famer sat out a number of games but eventually split time between the point and his more natural 2-guard spot, starting a total of 56 games during his rookie season
When he emerged as a dynamic player, helping the team qualify for the playoffs and a first-round upset over the Charlotte Hornets, it became clear that he would be needed on the floor.
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He was a cornerstone to develop the team around, and the Heat made the trade for Shaquille O’Neal that led to the franchise’s first championship in 2006. To acquire O’Neal, they gave up Butler, Odom and Brian Grant, thus breaking up a well-rounded group to establish their usual pattern of building a roster of top-heavy talent.
After O’Neal parted (on bad terms) from an injury-riddled team in 2008, Miami slunk back into the lottery, only to wind up drafting the most touted player on the board, Michael Beasley, with the second pick. The Heat were definitely not contenders that season either, sporting a team with a MVP-worthy Wade and a number of players on expiring contracts.
By this point, Riley was already looking ahead to the free-agent extravaganza of 2010 and effectively spent two of Wade’s best seasons on early playoff exits, all while casting one hopeful eye to the future.
Beasley, to his credit, did play in 81 games (starting 19) but that was due to necessity: a talent-thin roster can’t afford to stash a high draft pick on the bench.
Still, it was evidence enough that Beasley didn’t have (and unfortunately never has) what it takes to be a dependable contributor on both sides of the ball, something that made the decision to trade him before his third season an easy one.
Which brings us back to the curious case of Winslow.
The Heat now have the rare luxury of having both an über-talented rookie and a contending team. While early expectations were that Winslow could immediately make an impact, the reality is that both he and the team might benefit from gradual development.
There are already signs that this is the route the team intends to go with its promising young rookie (who, despite his skills and accomplishments, is just 19 years old). Winslow has admitted that there’s a huge difference between the college and pro game, based on what he experienced in Summer League play against mostly inferior competition.
But Wade has already taken an mentor-like role with his new teammate, helping him make that adjustment more easily. As Winslow explained to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson:
"“Everything between me and Dwyane has been helping me transition from college to the pros. We barely talk anything Heat [related]. He’s just helping me get adjusted from everything from the lifestyle to the duration of the season, how to take care of my body, diet and nutrition.”"
This is a crucial, if often overlooked, part of a player’s development. While immediate production on the court matters a great deal, Winslow’s long-view approach to off-the-court training will likely translate into a better overall career.
Retaining Luol Deng and James Ennis (as the team seems poised to do) and adding Gerald Green to the roster means that Winslow won’t be asked to do too much in hist first season. Coaches can pick spots more carefully and use Winslow’s athleticism and explosiveness more effectively, thereby putting him in a position to succeed rather than fail.
The Heat are in a good spot as a contending team. There’s no need to rush Winslow’s development or force him onto the court. He’s not being asked to carry the team as other lottery picks might and that will benefit Winslow as he takes the long-term approach to a productive career.
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