At some point this season, it is possible that assistant coaches Anthony Carter, Chris Quinn and Malik Allen, rise off the Miami Heat bench, and lift to their shoulders and then above their heads Max Strus, Gabe Vincent and Omer Yurtseven, as Elton John’s “Circle of Life” plays at FTX Arena.
Then again, considering the heavy hoisting involved with such grown men, perhaps the Simba Cam will be left to others.
No matter.
Because the circle of life from the Heat’s developmental program is incontrovertible.
As undrafted journeyman Heat contributors during a previous era, Carter, Quinn and Allen all developed into rotation players. Now, under their tutelage, Strus, Vincent and Yurtseven, each also undrafted, are doing the same.
It is what has made this recent patch of success with fill-in talent so rewarding to coach Erik Spoelstra, as Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Markieff Morris and other veteran members of the Heat rotation recover from injury and illness.
“To be able to develop players,” Spoelstra said, “I think the magic is in the human side of it, developing the relationships, breathing life into the young guys, particularly when the days are tough. And we have a really unique staff. Quinny and Malik and AC have been right there, where these guys have been. They’ve been in our locker room, they’ve been undrafted, they’ve been overlooked. They’ve had to go through the player-development program and earn the trust of the staff and players.
“So they’re incredible resources for your young guys. And sometimes it’s a cup of coffee. Sometimes it’s just an encouraging text or getting together face to face with somebody the next day, when they’ve had a tough stretch. You just can’t put a value on that. I think it’s incredible. And that’s why you see that bond between the players and our coaching staff.”
The selflessness of the team, Strus said, resonates through the coaching staff.
“They’re amazing people,” he said. “We’ve got a coaching staff that will be in the gym at any point, at any time you call ‘em. They’re always there for you. I’ve got to give a shout to my guy Anthony Carter, AC. Any time I reach out to him, text him, he’s there.
“It’s a willing staff that doesn’t get many off days. And they take pride in it. And I know that they really look forward to nights [when the young players thrive], because they have a lot to do with it.”
For all the undrafted talent on the Heat roster, almost all previously were with other organizations, at least on the G League. So the potential already had been noted around the league. But it is the next step that has provided such tangible payoff this season.
“It’s been great,” Vincent said. “One of my specific player-development coaches, Eric Glass, he’s put a lot of work in with me. He was my coach in the G League [with the Heat affiliate Sioux Falls Skyforce]. We spent a lot of time, a lot of time every day, really, whether it’s film or working on one specific shot that we think of in a game, with that matchup, or whatever the case may be.
“So we continue to work on my game, develop my shot. I mentioned early on that I’ve changed it a little bit since I joined the Heat a couple of years ago. So it’s nice to see that start falling and see it translate.”
And then, Spoelstra said, there is another layer of the underdogs-helping-underdogs dynamic, with undrafted veterans such as Udonis Haslem and Dewayne Dedmon empathic and encouraging.
“I’ve mentioned this several times, you can’t put a price on confidence that young players get from veteran players,” Spoelstra said. “That’s worth its weight in gold in this league. And it’s a tough thing to find. It’s a tough balance. When you have veteran teams and you have young players, oftentimes any kind of miscue or mistake that happens in a game, you just want to instinctively blame the young guys.
“But that’s one of the qualities I really like about this group. You see the veteran players really infusing confidence into the young players and they see the possibilities of what they can become, with that confidence. Because they also see the work ethic every single day. And I think that inspires our veteran guys. It gives them motivation and life. And then, they’re also producing while we have this adversity, going through these injuries right now.”
IN THE LANE
ONLY HASSAN: Not one to shy from the notion of there being a child in all of us, former Heat center Hassan Whiteside, in an interview with The Salt Lake Tribune, this past week spoke about the $330,00 Jeep Wrangler Sahara he affectionately calls Big Shirley. It took four shops and 1,800 work hours to fabricate the 7,000-pound, six wheel truck. “A mixture of a bunch of crazy people that did a great job,” the Utah Jazz center said of the vehicle powered by a Hellcat engine that can put out 900 horsepower. The downside? Whiteside admitted the mileage is such that he has to refuel each time he drives to and from practice. As for the nickname he bestowed of Big Shirley? “She’s big and good-lookin’, like a country mama,” Whiteside said.
BACK AT IT: The hair? The headband? Yes, that’s Tyler Johnson back in the NBA, on an emergency 10-day contract with the shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers. Thursday night’s 11:01 of action was the first in the NBA for the former Heat guard since 4:45 with the Brooklyn Nets in Game 6 of last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals against the Milwaukee Bucks. “Doc just told me come and play basketball,” Johnson said of 76ers coach Doc Rivers. “Doc’s kind of old school and so a lot of the terminology is very similar. So it’s not that big of an adjustment.” At 29, Johnson’s point of reference with the 76ers is the Heat’s 2018 first-round playoff loss to Philadelphia and Joel Embiid. “I haven’t played with any of these guys before,” Johnson said. “But as far as the organization, I played them in the playoffs when I was with Miami.”
COMING AROUND: Scheduled to face the Heat on Wednesday night at the start of the Heat’s seven-game trip, former University of Miami guard Lonnie Walker IV has come around with his recent play for the San Antonio Spurs, including a run of five consecutive games in double figures, as well as 21 points in 25 minutes in Thursday night’s victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. “He brings a different energy when he’s hot and playing confident,” teammate and former Florida State guard Devin Vassell said according to San Antonio’s Express-News. “That’s what we’ve got to build off of.” Walker has been working his way back as a reserve. “He’s playing better under control, trying to work on his defense, making better decisions,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “That’s a good thing.”
A BIG FAN: Before the first of the Heat’s two games against the Detroit Pistons this past week, Pistons coach Dwane Casey reflected on his time coaching Heat point guard Kyle Lowry with the Toronto Raptors. “When he first came into Toronto, everybody said, ‘Oh, don’t take him. Leave him alone,’ " Casey said of Lowry’s reputation of being irascible. “He came in and grew so much, and bought into what we were selling, ended up becoming the hub of everything we were doing. He became a tremendous player.” Casey added, “He is a great example of young players coming into this league who think they had it figured out. And then, all at once, you figure it out. And now the rest of it is history.” Casey said it is only right that Lowry is with a contender. “To see him where he is now,” Casey said, “it warms my heart, because that’s what we’re in this for.”
MOMENT OF CANDOR: Away from Golden State when the Warriors acquired Andrew Wiggins, Andre Iguodala quipped that he got the needed seal of approval during his tenure with the Heat. “We had a common teammate, Jimmy Butler,” Iguodala said, with Wiggins playing alongside Butler with the Minnesota Timberwolves. “Jimmy had nothing but positive things to say about Wiggs. He liked playing with Wiggs. That was all I needed to hear, to be honest. Because Jimmy doesn’t like anybody.”
MORE CANDOR: With Tuesday night’s blowout loss to the Heat standing as the Indiana Pacers’ lone national telecast this season on ESPN, TNT or ABC, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle did not mince words when asked what having a nationally televised game added. “About 20 minutes,” was his quip of a reply. Unless, of course, your team is blown out by 29, in which case the game at FTX Arena was completed in a relatively typical 2:15.
NUMBER
1. Times among his 159 career double-doubles that Kyle Lowry has done it solely with assists and rebounds (and not with points), which was the case Tuesday night against the Pacers, when he closed with 12 assists, 11 rebounds and eight points.
