Miami Heat’s Wayne Ellington finished just shy of the championship round of the NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest.
Wayne Ellington’s performance in the 2018 All-Star NBA 3-Point Contest was a metaphor for the entire Miami Heat season: too little, too late.
Ellington ended just one point shy of making the final round of Saturday night’s shootout. Despite persevering through a cold start, Ellington lit up the final three racks for nine straight buckets, including some of his moneyball rack, en route to a 17 point final score.
Coming up short has be the story of the Heat’s season. In the final game before the All-Star break, Miami threw away a 24-point lead to fall to the Philadelphia 76ers by two points.
Despite the outcome, Ellington’s presence alone was a bright spot in Miami’s tumultuous season. The Heat have a longstanding relationship with the midseason exhibition – Miami has fielded six other players at the event.
Furthermore, in the 32 years the 3-Point Contest has existed, Miami is tied for the most victories, four, with the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls. With the contest at Staples Center in Los Angeles, an Ellington victory would have been perfect. The last Heat player to take home the 3-point hardware was James Jones in the 2011 contest in L.A.
With less-than-ideal scores from sharpshooters Kyle Lowry, Bradley Beal, Eric Gordon and Paul George, Ellington quickly became the man on the hot seat.
"“It’s tough when you’re that third [place] guy,” Ellington said. “Like I keep saying I wish I would have made that last money ball so I could’ve been sitting at the top looking down. But when you’re that third guy you’re going to feel a little anxiety.”"
If anything, Ellington’s persistence to find his touch late in the third rack is a testament to his shooting in the regular season. Coming off the bench for Miami, Ellington is expected to be hot from the jump, though he doesn’t play until midway through the first quarter.
Oddly, Ellington’s shooting stats suggest he fits the format for the contest, with 68 percent of his field goals coming in catch-and-shoot situations. Still, with an obvious lack of zig-zagging, waving and sprinting to the open spot in the 3-point contest, Ellington seems to shoot at his best with defenders on chase.
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Assuming he keep shooting at this clip, Ellington could be a staple in the contest for years to come. A free agent in the summer, however, and the possibility stands that Ellington won’t be shooting in Miami colors.