Here’s why the Heat’s Dwyane Wade is taking more threes than ever to start the season
How much has the NBA changed during the past decade? Just ask Heat guard Dwyane Wade.
During the season that Wade finished as the league’s leading scorer in 2008-09, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told him “to stop shooting home-run threes.” These days, Spoelstra is urging the 36-year-old Wade to take that same shot.
“The NBA is changing, so it’s definitely an emphasis in this locker room that it’s never been,” Wade said in advance of Monday’s home game against the Kings. “Me and coach had a conversation about not only how the game is changing, but the growth even in him. We go back to when I was leading the league in scoring, I remember coach told me to stop shooting home run threes. What it was is pretty much shooting pull-up threes.
“Now, those are shots that everybody wants. Nobody wants that midrange two no more. Everybody wants you to step behind that line and shoot. It’s crazy where the league is going.”
That thinking is the driving force behind Wade’s uptick in three-pointers, even though he has built his Hall of Fame career with his ability to get to the basket and hurt defenses with his midrange game. He’s taking the shot more than ever to start this season, averaging 3.6 three-point attempts through the first five games.
Wade’s career high for a season is 3.5 threes attempted per game, which actually came in 2008-09 when Spoelstra was asking him to stop taking quick pull-up three-pointers.
“This is something we want him to develop and continue to evolve his game,” Spoelstra said Monday of Wade’s three-point shooting. “He still is going to play in his strength zones. But our system and the way we want, those are open in-rhythm shots. And you’re talking about a Hall-of-Fame offensive talent that has continued to develop his game year after year. To me, it seems like the absolute natural evolution and the next step, particularly as the scouting reports have been so defined to keep him out of the paint the last 16 years.”
Wade made 4 of 6 threes in Saturday’s win over the Blazers. He entered Monday’s game against the Kings shooting 38.9 percent (7 of 18) from distance for the season.
That’s an efficient start for Wade, considering he’s a career 28.8 percent three-point shooter.
“That’s a great look for us when it’s open and in rhythm,” Spoelstra said. “And Dwyane is such a talent that when he puts his mind to something and he has intentional work behind it, he gets better faster than arguably anybody I’ve ever been around or seen in this game.”
As expected, defenses are still allowing Wade to shoot open threes. According to the NBA’s tracking statistics, 14 of the 18 three-pointers he has attempted over the first five games have come with the closest defender at least four feet away from him.
“It’s something we all talk about, and we want guys to get those shots up,” Wade said. “I’m just going to continue to try to get them up if they’re there.”
Olynyk-Whiteside look working
Kelly Olynyk and Hassan Whiteside have played well together to start the season. Entering Monday, the Heat is outscoring teams by 29 points with the two 7-footers on the court.
That’s an improvement from last season, when the Heat was outscored by 12 points with Olynyk and Whiteside playing together.
“It’s hard not to notice or like a lot of things from the Portland game,” Spoelstra said, referring to Saturday’s win. “Great chemistry in that game with that group. K.O. did a lot of things that helped Hassan, and vice versa.”