Dion Waiters cashed in, now it’s time for him to become an All-Star

Dion Waiters just cashed in, signing the largest deal of his career with the Miami Heat. Yet, this could just be the beginning of him reaching his peak.

Miami Heat guard Dion Waiters is coming off of perhaps the most successful season of his young career. While the five-year veteran appeared in just 46 games last year, he put up averages of 15.8 points, 4.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds while knocking down nearly 40 percent of his 3-point attempts.

During Miami’s impressive second-half stretch, Waiters was the unquestioned, undisputed closer on a team that struggled early in the season to find that, post-Dwyane Wade.

Remember when Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors came to town?

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The Heat had just fallen to the Warriors in Oakland by 12 points less than two weeks prior, and it’s safe to assume most of Las Vegas was riding with Durant and company to take this one relatively easy, as well.

Then 33 points (11 in the fourth quarter) and a game winning 3-pointer from Waiters, and Miami walks away victorious for the fourth-consecutive outing, a streak that extended all the way to 13.

What about sparking an 18-point fourth quarter comeback on the road against the Brooklyn Nets, capped off by a clutch dagger with just six seconds to play?

Or, of course, the shot heard around the world in Cleveland:

Despite all this, Waiters certainly has room for improvement, and if cards are in play, could make a push for a spot on the Eastern Conference All-Star team. Let’s take a look at several factors on his side.

The talent pool in the East has steadily shrunk

With both Paul George and Jimmy Butler being shipped west in recent weeks, the star power the Eastern Conference is waning.

Outside of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Carmelo Anthony, and Isaiah Thomas, what true superstars still reside on the east coast?

Unfortunately, Dwyane Wade isn’t a guaranteed lock as he once was, and don’t throw Gordon Hayward and Kevin Love in that upper-echelon category, either. While all have proven to be much more consistent and even-keeled than Waiters since they all respectively came in to the NBA, the landscape has shifted entirely.

Last year’s All-Star guards–John Wall, DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry and Kemba Walker, in addition to Irving and Thomas–still remain, but we could potentially see several first-time All Stars from the East this year.

Waiters has always carried a chip on his shoulder, and I have a feeling that will play a major factor into why Miami might reach the playoffs next season.

Who knows? Maybe the Heat roll into All-Star weekend in Los Angeles two or three deep.

Miami will remain Waiters Island

Outside of Hassan Whiteside and Goran Dragic, the Heat have no other consistent scoring options.

James Johnson has his moments, but thrives on more of an all-around style of play. Justise Winslow has yet to prove he can be scoring threat, and Josh Richardson is still a bit unpolished on that end as well. Will Tyler Johnson continue to improve? Likely, but will he even be in South Florida by mid-season?

The only legit threat down the stretch the Heat have at this moment, would have to be Waiters.

While Dragic certainly is no slouch, I specifically recall the ball being in the opposite guard’s hands down the stretch of games, and I’m pretty confident that it was by the request of Erik Spoelstra.

Outside of James Johnson, no former outsider has embraced what is now known as the Miami culture quite like Waiters has.

He’s stated numerous times that he is in the best shape of his entire life, even taking to Instagram to share his body transformation:

If he can stay hungry and remain focused, the sky is the limit for what he can accomplish individually, and last season proved just that.

His confidence is at an all-time high

In the past, Waiters has been labeled as arrogant, cocky, and blatantly overconfident.

He once claimed, before he and Kyrie Irving had ever appeared in an NBA playoff game, that they were the best back court in east, namely over rival guards John Wall and Bradley Beal in Washington.

Have you ever read the piece Waiters personally penned for The Players’ Tribune? It’s definitely worth a glance, and despite some minor grammatical errors, its brilliant.

Just a week ago, he appeared on FS1’s Undisputed alongside Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe, and boldly proclaimed himself as the fourth-best shooting guard in the NBA.

Next: When will Dwyane Wade return to the Heat?

You can have that sort of confidence when you bet on yourself and cash in.

If the Heat are to prove their second-half run was no anomaly, Waiters will and must be a key ingredient in that mix. If Waiters is really as good as he claims he is, it’s time to put up, or shut up.