The Miami Heat will benefit from Kendrick Nunn’s resurgence
Despite finishing second in NBA Rookie of the Year voting last season, Kendrick Nunn played virtually no role for the Miami Heat in the restart bubble and in their NBA Finals run. Entering this season, it was impossible to predict which version of Nunn we were going to see with the Heat.
And through the first six games of the regular season, it looked like Nunn was going to find himself out of the rotation once again this year. During those first few games, he was only averaging 5.5 points on 40 percent shooting from the floor. In those games, he was only playing 14.5 minutes per contest.
However, over the course of the last four games, it’s almost like we’ve seen an entirely different Kendrick Nunn. In part due to the absence of Goran Dragic (who’s now back in the lineup), Jimmy Butler, and Tyler Herro, Nunn is once again playing a prominent role in the rotation for the Heat.
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Over the last four games, Nunn is averaging 22 points, 5.5 rebounds, and four assists per game on 56 percent shooting from the field and 44 percent shooting from 3-point range. He’s playing 35 minutes per game over that span, too.
I’m not sure if something has clicked with Nunn or if he’s now in rhythm, which he didn’t have the ability to get in while not playing big minutes before, but there’s no question that he looks more like the Kendrick Nunn from the pre-hiatus regular season than the one we saw in the playoffs – and that’s a great development for the Heat if he can continue to play at this level.
In a season where depth will be tested perhaps more than ever, as the NBA continues to play in the midst of a global pandemic, a resurgence from Nunn could pay dividends for this team once they are fully healthy.
The hope is that the Heat will have a fully healthy team once again over the course of the next week. While there’s no guarantee that it will happen, it’ll be interesting to see how coach Erik Spoelstra uses Nunn when he has Herro and Jimmy back.
If nothing else, looking from a long-term perspective, you can also make the case that Kendrick Nunn playing well will do wonders for his trade value. If the Heat is looking to make a big splash ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline, Kendrick Nunn playing well and looking more like his Rookie of the Year candidate self will only help on that front.