The undrafted player said he’s in a great place “between the ears.”
Duncan Robinson was the easiest punching bag for the Miami Heat last season. Fresh off signing a five-year, $90 million contract, he struggled to shoot early in the season. Although he had better stretches later, he lost his starting spot to Max Strus just before the playoffs and was out of the rotation soon thereafter.
Many expected (or hoped) the Heat would trade Robinson for a power forward this off-season. Of course, that didn’t happen. The former Division III college player is back for another year in Miami. And now, he said that he is in a great place “between the ears.”
“When I look back at the film, I don’t even recognize the player. … (Now) I feel like I’m in a great place between the ears.” — @d_bo20 pic.twitter.com/6IRB5oL911
— Five Reasons Sports (@5ReasonsSports) September 27, 2022
Robinson shot an otherworldly 44.6 percent from 3 on 8.3 attempts per game in 2019-20. He provided much-needed spacing for a starting lineup whose two best players — Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo — were non-shooters. He finished the season with the third-highest on/off net rating.
Chris Paul has won another on-off championship. pic.twitter.com/V4VBp7ART5
— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) August 15, 2020
Robinson’s 3-point shooting dipped to 40.8 percent in the 2020-21 season — still a great clip. But it slipped again to 37.2 percent for last season.
As someone who has shot over 40 percent from 3 since high school, Robinson should have a correction in his 3-point percentage this year. Him feeling in a better place mentally will help. The pressure to live up to his contract should lessen more than a year after signing it. He should just focus on playing basketball, and the high performance will follow.