The Miami Heat Have Expectations For Him Now That He’s Shown it
Though he hasn’t given Miami as much as they should want yet, he’s had some emphatic highlights in between.
Take this stuff, for example. The big man was, apparently, feeling springy, with this being his second dunk of that evening, and the least-impressive of the two.
Dedmon is playing above the rim tonight! pic.twitter.com/glsuWzY9gr
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) November 24, 2021
In just a short amount of time after Miami acquired him last April, Dedmon would make an immediate impact, securing a double-double in just his second Heat appearance. He would then score 19 points in Game 2 of the opening round of the playoffs against the eventual 2021 NBA Champion, Milwaukee Bucks.
Despite an unsuccessful postseason run for Miami last season, the door opened for Dewayne to return as the Heat’s secondary big man, as he would then re-sign with Miami in August. He’s now solidified his role as the primary backup center option for Bam Adebayo, the Heat’s heavily-mortgaged and longterm centerpiece.
It was certain that Dedmon would bring that same interior presence and even at a similar production, which made him a key acquisition at the time. While he’s still doing just that in the closing months of 2021, there is a new gear that the Heat should expect The Mechanic to kick into.
Should he be a lock in Spoelstra’s nine-man rotation and play an intricate role on a championship roster? It’s nearly absolute but more importantly, it’s clear that Dedmon has the tools, despite only making 16 playoff appearances in 429 career games.
He brings a substantial amount of energy and hustle in limited minutes, which has already made him, somewhat, of a household name in South Beach. The Heat will simply need every second of it they can get and hopefully, with purpose, intent, and the peak reserve interior play he’s shown capable of giving.