Wayne Ellington’s 3-point shooting is an X-factor for the Miami Heat

Wayne Ellington was on fire from the three-point line in the first half, and so was the Miami Heat. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case in the second half.

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It was a tale of two halves for the Miami Heat, who at halftime held a 66-58 but scored just 32 points in the entire second half in their 107-98 loss to the Detroit Pistons Sunday. Wayne Ellington’s performance was a microcosm of the Heat’s night.

Ellington made three three-pointers in the first seven minutes of the game, the third one coming with 5:11 left in the first quarter to give the Heat a 27-19 edge. His hot start was so hot that it forced Heat play-by-play announcer Eric Reid to scramble for a nickname, landing on the unfortunate moniker “The Golden Arm.” Ellington went on to score 11 points in the first quarter and 13 total points–and missing just two shots–in the first half.

Ellington was able to take advantage of eager ball movement that loosened him up for open looks. And he made them. A lot of them. But that wasn’t the case in the second half for Ellington or the Heat. And it wasn’t for a lack of ball movement; that was mostly fine. The Heat just didn’t make shots. Sometimes that’s how the cookie crumbles.

Ellington is Miami’s purest shooter. His mechanics are spot on, he can shoot off the dribble, and his balance is something the Heat haven’t had since Ray Allen. Speaking of Allen, Erik Spoelstra uses Ellington much in the same way. He runs him off screens along the three-point line to either create an open three-point look or space the floor for a teammate to cut to the basket. Ellington’s release is so quick that the play usually results in an open shot.

However, after a lights out first half, Ellington made just two of his eight shots in the second half, including just one three-pointer. The Heat, after making 10 three’s in the first half, converted on just four in the second half.

In other words: The Heat went cold.

Ellington finished with 18 points on 7-of-15 shooting, including 4-of-8 from three-point range. He also chipped in four rebounds and three assists in his 37 minutes. Miami needed every single one of those minutes considering they went to work with just nine healthy players (Goran Dragic, Josh McRoberts, Hassan Whiteside, Justise Winslow and Dion Waiters were all out).

It all amounts to another frustrating loss for the Heat. There’s a lot that goes into being a Winning Basketball Team, but making shots is probably at the top of the list. The good teams make shots consistently, teams like the Heat (not good teams) don’t. Ellington is a dangerous shooter who can make a difference like he did in the first half, but Miami will need shooting from more places than just his golden arm.

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