No one player can fill Dion Waiters’ shoes, but the Miami Heat will need to find solutions as they finish out the regular season.
Dion Waiters is hopeful that he will be back before the end of the season after spraining his left ankle against the Timberwolves last week but, in the meantime, the Heat still have work to do with 12 games left in the regular season.
At 34-36, Miami is currently tied with the Pistons for the eighth-best record in the East (at the moment, they are losing the tiebreaker). They are also one half game back of No. 7 Milwaukee and 1.5 games behind No. 6 Indiana.
Waiters has been a big reason why the Heat have been able to vault into the playoff race. He’s central to Miami’s drive-and-kick game that generates more shots at the rim and from three-point range. The Heat are shooting around 40 percent from three during this recent stretch, while Waiters is shooting 39.4 percent on three’s for the season.
He, primarily along with Goran Dragic, are able to create open looks for others by getting to the rim and passing out to open teammates along the perimeter. The Heat are shooting 40 percent from three with Waiters on the court, and just 33.8 percent when he’s off the court, per NBAwowy.com.
In their first game without him, the Heat started Josh Richardson at shooting guard against the Trail Blazers. Miami lost the game and made just 29 percent of their three’s (9-of-31) while Richardson scored just 10 points on eight shots and added two assists. For comparison, Waiters has been averaging 18.4 points and 4.8 assists per game since the Heat’s first win of its 13-game win streak.
The starting unit will have a different look with Richardson at the 2, one that will feature a heavier load on Dragic but may be stronger defensively with Richardson’s skill and length on the perimeter.
However, Richardson’s had an up-and-down season dealing with injuries, and is shooting just 22 percent (5-of-23) since rejoining the team in the last 13 games. He needs to re-find his stroke from last season if he’s going to be a factor for the Heat moving forward.
While Richardson will see more minutes with Waiters sidelined, the Heat will also need consistent efforts from Tyler Johnson and more point-forward minutes from James Johnson.
Tyler Johnson is the most comparable to Waiters in terms of his athleticism and skill set. Tyler Johnson can get to the rim, and is good enough of a passer to kick out to teammates (his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.89 is highest on the team). However, he has a knack of disappearing at times. He can go from putting up 20 to scoring two points on nine shots. He’ll need to be more aggressive and consistent over this final stretch.
James Johnson, while technically a power forward, has been Miami’s Draymond Green-Lite this season. He’ll bring the ball up, initiate offense, and allow Miami’s guards to play off the ball. He played 30 minutes against Portland the other night, slightly more than his season average. The Heat will continue to rely on him as an attacker and facilitator while Waiters is out.
Next: Stretch 4: Whiteside Shines, Waiters Falls
No single player will be able to replace Waiters, but the Heat have dealt with injuries all season and head coach Erik Spoelstra has found ways to make up for the team’s losses. It will take multiple players stepping up in their current roles for the Heat to bounce back from its loss to Portland and finish this playoff push.