Former Miami Heat guard Wayne Ellington has joined head coach Erik Spoelstra’s staff as a player development coach. Ellington recently explained why he’ll be successful as a Heat coach.
“I’m about the same s— that this organization is about,” Ellington said. “Same things. Same standards. Same approach to the game. Same work ethic. Same mindset. I had my best years in the league while I was here, and there’s no coincidence there. It’s the same beliefs, man. It’s a real connection there. It’s a real thing and it’s natural fit.”
Ellington was selected with the No. 28 overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft after spending three seasons playing college basketball at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He averaged 11-plus points per game and shot 37.1 percent or better from behind the three-point arc in each of his three seasons as a member of the Tar Heels.
Ellington played for a whopping nine teams — the Minnesota Timberwolves, Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies, Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks — across his 13 seasons in the NBA.
Most recently, he averaged 6.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.5 steals per game while shooting 38.9 percent from behind the three-point arc in 43 games played with the storied Lakers franchise during the 2021-22 regular season.
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