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Miami Heat: Time for Justise Winslow to step up with Josh Richardson out

By Duncan Smith

MIAMI, FL - MARCH 13: Justise Winslow #20 of the Miami Heat and Wayne Ellington #20 of the Detroit Pistons smile during a game on March 13, 2019 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL - MARCH 13: Justise Winslow #20 of the Miami Heat and Wayne Ellington #20 of the Detroit Pistons smile during a game on March 13, 2019 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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With Josh Richardson ruled out for the next two weeks with a groin injury, it’s time for Justise Winslow to step into the gap for the Miami Heat.

As we enter the final stretch of the NBA regular season, the Miami Heat have their backs against the wall. Essentially never healthy all season, the Heat are down one starter and key contributor in the form of Josh Richardson for their final four games. Justise Winslow is expected to start in his spot at small forward.

The bulk of Winslow’s 48 starts this season have come at point guard, first when Goran Dragic was out with injury but remaining there after Dragic’s return because of his stellar play. Now with this hole at small forward he will shift back to that familiar spot, given that coming into this season about 65 percent of his career minutes have come at small forward.

This has been the best season of Winslow’s career thus far. He’s earned the trust of coach Erik Spoelstra, doubling his career starts this season alone. Winslow is averaging 12.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game while averaging almost 30 minutes per contest and shooting a career-best 43.4 percent from the floor.

The burden is now on Justise Winslow to provide even more for the Miami Heat. With Winslow at small forward, Dragic will start at point guard which leaves the bench weakened, considering when the Heat have been at their best Winslow and Richardson started together with Dragic being the first man off the bench.

This means that those starting lineup minutes will mean even more as the bench simply won’t have the kind of scoring punch it had before. Dragic and Winslow should expect heavier minute loads with more asked of them on both the offensive and defensive ends.

The vast majority of Winslow’s minutes this season have come with Richardson on the floor with him. In fact, of Winslow’s 1,837 minutes, 1,172 of them came with Richardson alongside him.

While the Miami Heat outscored their opponents by 5.9 points per 100 possessions when the duo played together, they fared more poorly when apart. When Winslow has played without Richardson, the Heat have been outscored by 0.3 points per 100 possessions. It’s a thin deficit, but it’s clearly worse when they’re apart, as you might expect when you separate two of your best players.

Next. The Good, the Bad, the Miami Heat culture: The playoff push. dark

It’s been a tumultuous season for Justise Winslow, but it’s also been a great one for him. If there is one thing that would set him apart this season as one of the most important players for the Miami Heat, it would be digging deep and being the best player on the floor for his team when they need him most.

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