Heat rookie gives honest assessment of up-and-down summer league stint

The Miami Heat were excited to select Pelle Larsson in the second round of June’s draft, but the 23-year-old guard has been outshined by several of his teammates through the beginning of the summer league.

That changed Sunday, when Larsson tallied 21 points, six assists, four rebounds and four steals in Miami’s win over the Golden State Warriors to advance to the Vegas championship game.

It was, by far, Larsson’s most complete performance of the showcase in which he’s had games of shooting 33% or had as many turnovers as made shots.

As the game has slowed down, Heat rookie Pelle Larsson has only gotten better as summer league has gone on.

“I think I kind of sped up myself a little too much, just not having played in a while,” Larsson told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “It’s been a while since the college season ended, so I just need to get back to my own basics a little bit more and double down on that, what got me here, and then being what I’m going to be able to bring in the regular season.”

Larsson was a standout as a senior at Arizona, where he averaged 12.8 points on 52% shooting, including 42.6% on 3s, 4.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He’s capable of scoring at three levels, sprints in transition and can initiate offense.

Heat coaches have been impressed with his intangibles, too.

“He’s a tireless worker,” Heat assistant and summer league coach Dan Bisaccio told the Sentinel. “He’s a great leader on the floor and he’s just got a really good disposition and he’s a man of a craft.”

Larsson has drawn praise from Bisaccio for his attention to detail. When Larsson is working on the angles of his shots or simulating pick-and-roll situations. it doesn’t go unnoticed. 

“He’s a perfectionist,” Bisaccio said.

This approach has helped Larsson improve in his short time in Las Vegas after an offbeat start.

“In the first couple of games, there’s always a natural tendency to press a little bit,” Bisaccio said. “Maybe a shot doesn’t fall here and there. But the thing about him is he’s never let it affect his play. Whether he’s making a shot or missing a shot, he’s always right into the next play.”