Miami Heat: Dion Waiters season grade & recap

Dion Waiters was needed to be instant offense this season for the Miami Heat. Whether he was or not could make or break his grade for the season.

In a year where anyone who could consistently get their own shot would have been a big part of the Miami Heat game-plan, Dion Waiters would have seemed like the perfect candidate to fill that void. Classically billed as a combo guard with enough handle to create space and his own shot, but also with a soft touch and feathery enough jumper to capitalize on said creation.

In past seasons, and for quite a few different organizations, Dion has seemingly done just that. His lowest per season average in terms of scoring came during the 2015-16 season as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder where he was right at 10 points per game. After signing with the Miami Heat in the summer of 2016, Waiters went on to average almost 16 points per game for the Heat, although only playing in 46 games that season.

After declining a player option for the second year of that two-year deal he signed in 2016, he inked a four-year pact with the Miami Heat for $52 million dollars, and the Heat supposedly had their microwave of the future.

Or did they? That was the question being asked the following season, as Waiters saw his season average drop from nearly 16 points per game to right at 14. Even worse, he only played in 30 games during the 2017-2018 season.

Fast forward to this season, and you surely believed last year was the anomaly, and that Waiters would return to the form that earned him such a lucrative deal. In the words of the famous mascot head dawning sports television personality Lee Corso, “Not so fast”! Waiters was in all actuality just average, and that is where we start to formulate a grade.

Looking at his per game averages for this season, he was down from the already down scoring numbers from the previous season. Having averaged nearly 16 points per game in the season that earned him $52 million from the Heat, this past season saw Waiters average only 12 points per game. Although he did so on 41 percent overall shooting, nearly 38 percent shooting from deep, and while maintaining a 53 percent effective field goal percentage, this was a season where the Heat just needed more from a guy who in other season seemed as though he wanted all the shots.

Furthermore, when you were shooting as efficiently as Waiters was for the Miami Heat this season, he should have been taking more shots than he did. While Dwyane Wade played in almost as many games as he ever has this past season, Goran Dragic missed substantial amounts of time with injury as well, which should have opened up the opportunity for Waiters. The only issue is that Waiters himself only played in 44 of 82 possible games this season, and looked out of shape when returning to the lineup, two things he’s had issues with in the past in health and proper conditioning.

While a lack of health or wind due to lack of proper conditioning could be pointed to when thinking about why he didn’t take as many shots as he should have this season, his rebounding average was on par with the rest of his career at around three per game. His assist numbers were down to about three per game this season, where he had been closer to four per game in his previous two seasons with the Miami Heat.

As far as the stats go, Waiters numbers were down nearly across the board and although he was more efficient, his perceived lack of aggression really affects his grade. When thinking about the eye test for Waiters on offense, the story that the stats told came to life as you watched him play.

There were times where it seemed as though he would turn it on, and he just wouldn’t or couldn’t, and there were also times where you practically screamed for Waiters to take the shot, and he didn’t. There were also times where he just physically looked out of shape and out-of-place. When combining what the eyes told you with what the stats say about his season, his offensive grade adds up to about a C+.

When thinking about defense, that has never been Waiters strong suit, where he was often considered a liability in previous stops during his career. This wasn’t the case during his initial season with the Miami Heat though, as although he still wasn’t a top flight defender, he clearly competed and tried each night as that is what it takes to stick with the Heat.

He reverted back to his old self this season for the Heat however. There were nights when Waiters seemed into in on the defensive end, competing like you expect a Miami Heat player to compete on that end of the floor. Then there were times where the old Dion reared his head, falling asleep on the defensive end of the floor, or seemingly just not caring and allowing a bucket or play to happen.

His steal numbers from this season were by far the lowest of his career at barely over a half steal per game, while his blocks remained around his career average. His total performance on defense as a whole this season is best illustrated in his per 100 possessions defensive rating of 111 points, which ties his career most allowed that he also allowed as a rookie. When combining the numbers with what you saw on the court, Waiters grade defensively was no higher than a C-, and he wasn’t that far off the D+.

Although his defensive grade could have been lower, he could have only been but so bad as he still saw time for Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, but that could explain why he averaged his lowest amount of minutes per game this season since joining the Heat. Whether it be conditioning, a lack of motivation, or something else, Waiters needed to be better.

Not to continue checking another persons wallet, but at $52 million dollars, he just needed to be a lot better for the Miami Heat than he was this past season. When combining his grades, it isn’t anything pretty. Let’s just hope he can revert to his first season with Miami form in this next season, if he is still in fact with the team.

Final Season Grade: C-