Miami Heat: Luol Deng Proving To Be Valuable Asset

The Miami Heat are in the second round of the playoffs and the consistent play of Luol Deng has a lot to do with the team’s success.

Two seasons ago, it appeared that the Miami Heat were about to go up in flames. Not only were they coming off a disappointing 4-1 series loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2014 NBA Finals, but the guy that helped spearhead the team’s run to four consecutive Finals appearances and a pair of championships, LeBron James, decided to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Needless to say, Miami was facing a lot of questions at that time. However, after signing Chris Bosh to a multi-year deal, former Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng also agreed to a two-year deal to help fill the void created by James’ departure, a move that was deemed as significant by team president Pat Riley.

"“Signing Luol Deng is one of the most important free agent signings that we have ever had in the history of the franchise,” Riley told the Miami Herald. “He is a proven All-Star and quintessential team player, both as a scorer, as well as an All-NBA defender.“He brings the attitude of a warrior and competes every single night against the very, very best. We are thrilled to welcome him to the Heat family.”"

In the eyes of some, Riley’s assessment of Deng was exaggerated to some degree, especially since Miami failed to make it to the playoffs last season. This marked the first time since 2004 that a team made it to the finals one season and failed to qualify for the playoffs the following year. The last team to achieve this dubious honor was the Los Angeles Lakers.

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Fast forwarding to the present, the Heat finished tied for the third-best record in the Eastern Conference, pitting them in a first-round matchup against the Charlotte Hornets. Despite Miami winning the first two games by an average of 22 points, the Heat had to force a Game 7 with a road win at Charlotte in Game 6.

Ironically, the series concluded in the same fashion it began, with the Heat winning by a 33-point margin (106-73), setting up a second-round matchup with the Toronto Raptors. There are several reasons why the Heat managed to advance to the next round despite losing three consecutive games.

For starters, there was Dwyane Wade turning back the clock with a vintage performance in Game 6, scoring 23 points, including a pair of three-pointers in the waning seconds to help Miami extend its season.

In Game 7, Goran Dragic pumped in 25 points and limited Kemba Walker to nine points on 3-for-16 shooting. Let’s not forget about Hassan Whiteside, who posted his 23rd game in which he’s had at least five blocks this season — setting a franchise record for blocks in a series with 24.

While all of those factors certainly contributed to the Heat winning its first playoff series in two seasons, the presence of Deng proved to be valuable as well. In Game 1, Deng scored 31 points on a ridiculous 11-for-13 shooting from the field. As you can see from the video, Deng was unstoppable, scoring from just about every spot on the floor.

Although he wasn’t the best player in the series finale, Deng proved to be Miami’s most consistent player over the course of the series. For example, in the first six games, he averaged 8.5 first-quarter points, and he added seven more in the first quarter of Game 7 en route to a 15-point performance.

Furthermore, Deng tied Wade as Miami’s top scorer, averaging 19 points per contest, which is a notable increase from his per-game average of 12.3 that he posted during the regular season. Along with that, Deng is currently ranked third on the team in overall shooting percentage (.541) ; conversion rate from beyond the arc (.513) and rebounds (6.6).

But Deng didn’t just produce from an offensive standpoint, he also played solid defense as well. In fact, he limited his counterpart, Marvin Williams, to just 5.1 points per game on 27.5 percent shooting. It is also worth mentioning that Williams failed to score in three of the seven games, going a woeful 0-for-22 from the field in those contests.

That being said, Deng is proving that he can still get the job done at both ends of the floor.

"“The emergence of Luol Deng was the most important thing to salvage this season,” Wade said, via the Palm Beach Post. “Got to give Lu lot of credit. He wanted the opportunity and he got it and he did something with it.“You never can replace Chris. … (but) to be able to have Luol play the way he has, gave us lot of hope and confidence moving on.”"

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As was the case during his time with the Bulls, Deng is showing once again that he is capable of being the glue that holds a team together during times of adversity. And if he continues to play at this level, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Miami advance to the conference finals where a potential showdown with the Cavaliers could be looming.