It is safe to say that last season did not go quite as planned for the Miami Heat and Duncan Robinson. After being a starter for two straight seasons, Robinson found himself losing minutes and eventually sat on the bench for most of the NBA playoffs.
It all started with a shooting slump at the beginning of the season. By the time Robinson picked things up, it was already too late.
The Heat were in more of a rhythm without him. Despite his sharpshooting ability, his ineffectiveness on defense led to him becoming an expendable part of the rotation.
It will be interesting to see how Duncan Robinson responds to last season. Keeping that in mind, we segue into his biggest question for the upcoming season.
Biggest Question For Duncan Robinson: How, if at all, will he prove his value with Max Strus in the mix?
Duncan Robinson signed a $90 million contract with the Miami Heat last summer. Expectations were high that he would continue to produce as one of the top shooters in the NBA.
The Miami Heat haven’t given up on Duncan Robinson yet, as he’s one of the NBA’s premier shooters when on. However, Max Strus makes it a rough go at it.
His shooting was so valuable to the team that his defensive flaws did not matter. As soon as Robinson started to struggle from the field though, he became more of a liability than an asset.
The Heat searched for answers, only to find one in Max Strus.
Strus had a great season last year, shooting 41 percent from three. He isn’t an amazing defender, but he is certainly more reliable than Duncan Robinson.
Strus, essentially, replaced Duncan Robinson in the starting lineup. Miami is likely to move forward with Strus as well.
However, Duncan Robinson is still on the team and while he has been involved in trade rumors, they haven’t given up on him just yet. Duncan Robinson will play some minutes this season and have a chance to prove why he earned his starting spot in the first place.
When Duncan Robinson gets hot, he might be one of the toughest players to defend on the Heat. That is saying a lot, considering the talent of the Heat roster from top to bottom.
But Robinson is the only player who can easily start dropping seven to eight threes a game if he starts feeling it from deep. That makes him one of the most coveted shooters in the NBA.
Duncan Robinson has the potential to earn his spot back within the Heat rotation this season. Whether or not he will do so is the question, especially since he will be competing with Strus for minutes and the mere opportunity to do so.