Miami Heat: Why Erik Spoelstra is still one of the top coaches in the NBA
Development
Did you know seven of the key contributors were outside of the top 10 when drafted? Let’s dissect that bit further:
- Justise Winslow – 10th pick
- Josh Richardson – 40th pick
- Derrick Jones Jr – Undrafted
- Rodney McGruder – Undrafted
- Hassan Whiteside – 33rd pick
- Tyler Johnson – Undrafted
- Duncan Robinson – Undrafted
- Bam Adebayo – 14th pick
None of those players were necessarily coming into the league with many expectations nor did they come in ready for the NBA. One of the best “projects” that worked extremely well due to Spoelstra’s system is Whiteside.
He was drafted in the second round, didn’t play in Sacramento, out of the league, and played in the G-League. Then, a couple of seasons under Spoelstra and everything changed. He became the league’s top shot-blocker one season, following season, he was the top rebounder. Not to mention this got him a huge paycheck.
The same goes to players like McGruder, Jones, Johnson who were undrafted but after a few years being developed under Spoelstra and they become regular key contributors to the team.
Winslow and Richardson are a different story. Each of these players has had a slow start to their career but now their production has increased tremendously. Winslow developed into the team’s starting point guard and Richardson developed into a top 3-and-D player that was used as the main trade asset.
Seven different players, many different positions but all have one thing in common.
Defense.
With the exception of Johnson and Robinson, all of the other players are average to above-average defenders and that is mainly due to Spoelstra’s defensive mindset.
With the departure of Whiteside and the addition of Herro, Spoelstra’s development will be tested.