The eyebrow-raising news on the historical feats achieved by Kendrick Nunn. And Heat notes
A six-pack of Miami Heat notes on a Friday, on the eve of Game 1 at Milwaukee on Saturday (2 p.m, ESPN, Bally Sports Sun):
▪ To appreciate how Kendrick Nunn has played since Victor Oladipo’s season-ending knee injury, consider this:
During those 18 games, since replacing the injured Oladipo in the starting lineup, Nunn shot 53.8 percent from the field. Among guards who took at least 200 shots, only Derrick Rose shot a higher percentage from that date (April 9) through the end of the regular season.
Since that day Nunn became a starter again, he has made 17 of 17 free throws — most by any player in the league without a miss.
Since that day he became a starter again, he has shot 39.8 percent on three-pointers, 16th best among all NBA players who have made at least 40 threes during that time period.
The offensive efficiency has been elite, or close to it.
Overall, Nunn averaged 16.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists as a starter after Oladipo’s injury, committed only 22 turnovers in those 18 games and had 13 steals.
How is this efficiency historically?
If you include Nunn’s past 21 games, he’s only the fourth player since 1991 to average 17.2 points while shooting 54 percent from the field, 42 percent on three pointers and 94 percent from the line over that long a span of games, according to HoopsHabit’s Simon Sperling and Stathead. The others: Mark Price, Reggie Miller and Steve Nash.
For the entire season, Chris Paul, Steph Curry and Kyrie Irving are the only other players who did what Nunn achieved this season: shoot at least 48 percent from the field, at least 38 percent on threes and 90 percent from the line. (Nunn closed the season at 48.5, 38.1, 93.3.)
And there’s this, from HoopsHabit and Stathead: Only six players have averaged at least 15 points and three assists with an effective field goal percentage of at least 54 percent for the first two seasons of an NBA career:
Nunn, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Walter Davis, Curry, Ben Simmons and Zion Williamson.
(Effective field-goal percentage is a metric that adjusts for the fact that a three-point field goal is worth one more point than a two-point field goal.)
Nunn said it’s “exciting” to now be on opposing teams’ scouting reports.
“There may have been times [earlier] I thought they would have to game plan on [me] and maybe I wasn’t on it,” Nunn said this week. “It’s a testament to my work ethic proving people wrong and showing what I can do on the floor.”
Erik Spoelstra said Nunn is “a three-level scorer. Isn’t that what it’s termed now? He can score at the rim, he’s got a cleverness and craftiness there and a sturdiness to his finishes. He is a great, exceptional midrange shooter and obviously he’s a great three-point shooter, as well. And he can do it off the catch and he can do it off the dribble. But that’s a credit to him really working at all those things behind the scenes to improve in all those areas...
“He has improved in other areas. Making offensive reads and as a defender, he’s much better and that’s all we care about. He has really stepped up and given us meaningful and impactful minutes.”
After dealing with COVID-19 last summer, Nunn didn’t feel like himself in the bubble, at least initially, and lost his starting job. He enters this postseason confident and firmly entrenched in the starting lineup.
“Unfortunate situation,” he said of last summer. “I was trying to get healthy. I’m healthy now, focused and ready to attack.”
▪ Bam Adebayo was the only Heat rotation player this season who shot better than 34 percent in the clutch, defined by the NBA as the final five minutes of games with a margin of five points or fewer.
Adebayo shot 21 for 34 (61.8 percent) from the field in the clutch — second best in the NBA behind Atlanta’s Clint Capela (minimum 20 shots).
From the free-throw line, Adebayo shot 17 of 23 (73.9 percent) in the clutch….
Jimmy Butler was an exceptional 30 for 35 on clutch free throws this season (85.7 percent).
▪ Regarding any possibility of Kawhi Leonard joining the Heat in free agency this summer (we’ve consistently reported it’s a long shot), ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said this week:
“I think Kawhi is staying with the Clippers. There’s been some mention of Miami… Could Miami be a sleeper for him? I think he’s where he wants to be geographically. I think he’s gotten along very well with the organization, with management, with ownership.
“I think [coach] Ty Lue has really been good this year for them. The way it’s been described with me with Ty in L.A. is, ‘Ty can hit you without leaving a bruise. And he can coach you hard, can hold guys accountable. And I think that’s an environment Kawhi likes.”
▪ KZ Okpala led the Heat in defensive field-goal shooting percentage against this season; players shot 41 percent when Okapala defended them (82 for 200).
Andre Iguodala was second among Heat players still on the team at 42.9 percent, Trevor Ariza third at 43.0.
▪ Two categories where the Heat led the NBA: Miami held opponents to just 41.3 points in the paint and 10.4 fast break points this season, both the lowest in the NBA.
Miami also finished third in opponent field goals made (39.1), third in charges drawn (69), fifth in points allowed (108.0), fifth in deflections (1,131), sixth in opponent field-goal percentage (.459) and 10th in defensive rating (110.7 points allowed per 100 possessions).
So even though the defense struggled at times, this was a good defensive team overall.
▪ A few media notes: The Heat’s popularity is such that even its meaningless final regular-season game Sunday night against Detroit (a game that had no impact on the playoff seedings) outdrew Game 1 of the Panthers-Lightning series on local television. Heat-Pistons was watched in 2 percent of Miami-Fort Lauderdale homes with TV sets, compared to 1.5 percent (combined Bally/NBC-SN audience) for the simultaneous Panthers game.…
Bally Sports Sun gets to air every game of this Heat-Bucks series that’s not on ABC, which likely means every game. ESPN and TNT cablecasts of Heat-Bucks also will be seen in South Florida; ESPN’s Ryan Ruocco and Hubie Brown call Game 1 on Saturday. Kevin Harlan and Reggie Miller call Game 2 on TNT on Monday….
None of the ESPN or Bally Sports Sun play-by-play announcers or game analysts will be in Milwaukee….
ESPN hired newly elected Hall of Famer and former Heat star Chris Bosh to make at least a dozen studio appearances, throughout the postseason, on various platforms: “The Jump,” “SportsCenter,” “First Take” and “Get Up.”
This story was originally published May 21, 2021 at 1:28 PM.
