Miami Heat rookie Justise Winslow is a difference maker defensively, but he needs to get things going on the offensive end of the court.
*All stats are from before the game against the Portland Trail Blazers Sunday afternoon and come from Basketball-Reference*
When the Miami Heat had Duke forward Justise Winslow fall into their lap with the 10th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, they believed they had the steal of the draft. Winslow was expected to step right into the rotation as relief for Dwyane Wade at shooting guard and on the wing off the bench.
They knew that they were getting a player well beyond his years defensively. They are already using him in late game situations to defend the top scorer on the opposing team. Despite not starting a game all season, he’s averaging a healthy 27.6 minutes per game. That is good enough to be ranked fifth among rookies, as the Heat clearly have confidence using their top pick from this year’s draft.
His defensive prowess is enough reason for him to get playing time, as he is holding opponents 4.7 percent under their season average and allowing them to shoot only 38.7 percent against him on the season. In addition, he has a defensive rating of 95.3, which speaks volumes as to how strong he has been on that end of the court.
While Winslow is clearly a standout defensively, he has a long way to go offensively, where he is currently offering very little for the Heat. Just look at their most recent game. Miami scored 116 points, but Winslow provided only three. That kind of production is tough to accept from someone as integral to the team as Winslow, but his offense is currently a liability for the Heat.
The Heat knew when they selected him that he had some work to do offensively. At Duke, Winslow was able to take advantage of opponents because he was playing a lot of power forward, using his athleticism to beat players. In the NBA, he is logging most of his minutes at small forward this season.
His offensive shortcomings have been on display because of that, and it has hurt the Heat at times. His offensive skillset is limited currently, as he was able to get by on his athleticism in college, but that isn’t working in the NBA.
He is shooting 42 percent overall, and the worries people had about his perimeter jump shot have come to fruition as Winslow is knocking down only 26.5 percent of his three-pointers after making 41.8 percent in college. He is also making only 60.1 percent of his free throws.
The college three-point range is one thing that has translated to the next level for Winslow. He is making 50 percent of his shots from 10-16 feet away and 46.7 percent from 16 feet to the three-point line. That helps give the Heat some spacing, but they would benefit greatly if he could improve his range to the three-point line.
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That is something that could happen over time, but right now it’s just not there. The Heat still have to be happy with what he brings defensively, but they might be a little disappointed with how limited he’s been offensively. It will hopefully come around sooner than later, but at this time, Winslow is a liability for the team when on the court as there is only so much defense that can make up for his lack of offense.