Miami Heat: Wayne Ellington keeps making it rain from distance
By Simon Smith
Wayne Ellington has overcome a slow start to the season to provide invaluable long range shooting for the surging Miami Heat.
At the start of this season, Wayne Ellington was somewhat the odd man out as it pertained to the backcourt rotation of the Miami Heat.
Aside from swingman Rodney McGruder, still sidelined with a leg stress fracture, the Heat had a full complement of players available in the early stages of the season. As a result, Ellington struggled to find the consistency he displayed in his first season as a member of the Heat.
After averaging a career-high 10.5 points in 24.2 minutes per game last season, Ellington found himself at the back of the shuffle, averaging just 6.6 points in 17.1 minutes per game over his 15 games. But as the injury toll of the team begin to add up and various players were forced onto the sidelines, Ellington’s confidence and production rose dramatically.
Considering his current level of performance, it seems unfathomable that Ellington had six games early this season in which played in 12 minutes or less. His latest performance was unquestionably his most pivotal of the season.
Starting his first game of the season in the absence of injured point guard Goran Dragic, Ellington continued his fine line of form, notching 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field and 6-of-10 shooting from 3-point range.
Over his last 15 games, Ellington has averaged 15.1 points in 33.3 minutes per game, which includes hitting at a 40.1 percent clip from long range on a crazy 9.5 attempts per game.
Wayne Ellington was 6-of-10 from three tonight. So far he's one of two players ever to shoot 40%+ from three on 14 attempts per 100 possessions, the other being Steph Curry.
— Couper Moorhead (@CoupNBA) January 21, 2018
Put him in the three-point contest.
During this recent stretch, Ellington has nailed an incredible 57 3-pointers, trailing only Lou Williams of the Los Angeles Clippers with 61. Over the entire season, Ellington ranks third with 137, behind only Klay Thompson and James Harden.
Heat head coach Erik Spelstra recently expressed his thoughts on Ellington’s role with the Heat:
"“I don’t get caught up on whether the ball is going in or not. I absolutely love watching Wayne work at his craft every single day, he hasn’t changed one bit….The most important thing is he creates actions for us….it adds to the diversity of our offense….You have to play him all the way out to 25 feet, that helps your offense.”"
Spoelstra is not wrong when he states that Ellington indeed helps the offense, even if the ball is not going through the net. Over his 46 games this season, the Heat have been 8.1 points per 100 possessions better off on the offensive end when Ellington has been on the floor.
A clear case of Ellington’s value was during a recent home win against the Milwaukee Bucks. Despite scoring seven points and hitting just 1-of-7 from 3-point range, Ellington was nonetheless a +16 while on the floor in his 32 minutes on the court.
With starting guard Dion Waiters sidelined for the remainder of the season, and the team seemingly in a perpetual flux with an array of injuries, Ellington’s reliable presence is simply priceless for coach Spoelstra and his teammates.
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With the Heat about to face the Houston Rockets and their league-leading barrage from 3-point range, it will fascinating to see if Ellington can show up a team averaging an astonishing 43.3 attempts per game.