This is what Pat Riley’s father told him, way back when: Plant your feet. Stand firm. Make a point about who you are. And what you believe in.
Justise Winslow has surely never seen that quote, and won’t unless the Heat president makesThe Winner Within required reading for his prized rookies. But it sure looked, in the second quarter of Wednesday’s season-opening 104-94 win against the Charlotte Hornets, in the second quarter of his official NBA debut, like the precocious teen already has a handle on all four principles.
Winslow planted his right foot on the edge of the red paint after rushing past Jeremy Lin. He stood firm, albeit while suspended in air, as he soared past Al Jefferson and Cody Zeller. He made a point about who he is, while making two points for Miami, with a vicious slam. He showed what he believed in as he spun and screamed: himself.
“I wasn’t nervous,” Winslow said. “I was just ready for the moment.”
The slam was spectacular, but the emotion was even more stunning in light of the stoicism that we’ve seen so far. We certainly haven’t seen that.
“No, none of us have,” Dwyane Wade said with a smile later. “He made all of us scream.”
The Heat made their fans scream again in a good way, scream with throats full of hope, after a lost season that ended too soon, even after dragging on too long.
“It’s been a while, huh?” Chris Bosh quipped to the crowd when addressing them.
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