Miami Heat Round Table: Taking inventory of the win streak
Who is the biggest winner of this streak?
Tachauer: You mean besides me, finally being able to shut out all the supporters of tanking? Probably Goran Dragic. He’s finally being looked at as the elite point guard he has always been. Seriously, Dragic is playing out of his mind. And beyond that, he’s making the rest of his teammates better too. Which goes to show he’s beyond just a sharp shooter; he’s also a stud of a playmaker. But I want to give a shoutout to James Johnson as well. He’s been tremendously overlooked since the Chicago Bulls drafted him in 2009. What a goon (in the best way possible).
Urbina: The fans, I guess? At least half of them, since the other half would have preferred to take the tanking route anyways. I suppose Waiters has actually been the biggest winner. Dragic already got his huge deal a few summers ago, and isn’t due for another contract until 2020, so this isn’t as important for him. Waiters took a gamble on himself and turned down more money to sign a short deal in Miami. He wanted to prove that he’s a better player than he had previously shown, and no longer the immature kid demanding LeBron James pass him the ball. For the first half of the season, when he battled injuries and inconsistent play, it looked like he had made a huge mistake. Now, I think the opposite is true. He’s going to get a huge contract this offseason barring a regression in his play. Good for you, Dion.
Mora: I honestly want to say Spoelstra. He never gets any credit. Not a lot of coaches can weather the storm and find a way to get a winning streak together after losing two of the Big 3 and key role players to injuries. He has overcome that and done it with stride. After so many lineup rotations, he finally found the perfect one that has meshed so well together and has brought out the best in every player. As a coach, I think his back was against a wall and instead of going the relatively easy route of tanking, he kept his head high and said We can make this work! and as a hardcore fan, I respect that.
Smith: It’d have to be Waiters. Whiteside and Dragic are already under long-term contracts, whilst James Johnson has impressed all season, not just during the recent streak. Waiters has shown in the past he can produce numbers. Even this season alone he had a stretch of eight games averaging 18.8 points per game before being sidelined by injury. The downside was it came at a 41.8 percent clip from the field.
But this recent stretch of production COMBINED with efficiency has been outstanding. If this continues, Waiters is going to get paid big-time this offseason.
Nurse: The biggest winner in this streak is Dion Waiters’ bank account. His game has been thriving as a whole and despite the shortcomings he has been getting praised more than Erik Spoelstra and Goran Dragic combined. In the end it all equals a bigger payday than the $3 million player option he was due next season.
Haynes: The Miami Heat. After the way Wade left, some questioned if the Heat would still be a free agent destination. But, after rejuvenating the careers of Dion Waiters and James Johnson, that question is answered. Good players willing to bet on themselves will flock to the Heat. Oh, and Hassan Whiteside is learning that winning > stats.
Brock: James Johnson. That man’s going to get paid. And Spoelstra, who continues to be one of the most underrated coaches in the league. Outside of Popovich, who would definitively be getting more out of this team? The man’s a genius.