Miami Heat: The Duncan Robinson show continues

Entering the season a complete unknown, the amazing rise of Miami Heat sharpshooter Duncan Robinson seemingly knows no bounds.

It’s getting difficult to find the superlatives to describe the impact of Duncan Robinson. In his first full season with the Miami Heat, Robinson’s transition from undrafted two-way player to one of the most lethal marksman in the league has been astonishing.

His latest masterpiece, a 27-point outburst featuring nine 3-pointers in a home win over the Orlando Magic, simply added to his rapidly growing resume. For the season, Robinson is averaging 13.0 points in 29.6 minutes per game, with his +272 plus/minus return while on the floor, and 114.3 offensive rating, each ranking first on the team.

Just 77 games into his career, Robinson has not only broken a number of records for 3-pointers made early in a career, he’s crushed them. With 236 career triples, the next closest through the first 77 games of a career are Luka Doncic and Donovan Mitchell with 182.

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Following the Magic game, head coach Erik Spoelstra described the rise of Robinson in such a short space of time:

"“If you took a poll on NBA players and asked who Duncan Robinson was coming into training camp, I would probably say 70 percent of the league didn’t know who he was….I think it’s a really remarkable story of persistence and how much he’s improved is really incredible….the degree of difficulty in his movement on catch-and-shoot three’s is up there with anybody in this league, and his accuracy on those tough ones really is unique.”"

Currently ranked third in the league with 225 made triples for the season, Robinson’s 44.6 percent return is the best among the 15 players who’ve nailed at least 159 trays for the season. It’s been his incredible combination of attempt frequency and accuracy that has catapulted him to an incredible level of play. Overall, the 25-year-old has 17 games this season of five or more 3-pointers, and four games of at least seven triples.

Given Robinson’s growing reputation, the gravity which he attracts from the opposition is only going to significantly help his fellow teammates, now and in the future. Since returning from the All-Star break, Kelly Olynyk has shot at an incredible 83.3 percent clip from 3-point range when sharing the floor with Robinson. Another benefiting from Robinson’s presence since the All-Star break has been Kendrick Nunn, who has shot at a 48.5 percent clip alongside Robinson, and just 37.5 percent when he’s resting.

Looking ahead, the Heat have a two-game road trip coming up before returning home for a three-game home stand. Not only are the next five games against teams with a sub-.500 record, four of these teams are ranked in the bottom 10 in defensive efficiency.

With Wayne Ellington holding the Heat record with 227 made 3-pointers for a season, Duncan Robinson looks set to smash this with 20 games still remaining. And with the Miami Heat now three games ahead of the Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers in securing the No. 4 slot in the Eastern Conference standings, the sharpshooting exploits of Duncan Robinson are going to be vital in the stretch run to the postseason.