Wayne Ellington, an NBA veteran, made a big splash recently when he was spotted at training camp as the Miami Heat’s development coach instead of a player. In one of the clips, he was seen coaching his former teammate, Heat shooting guard Josh Richardson.
Ellington’s last full NBA season was with the Lakers in 2021-22, where he put up an impressive 6.7 points per game and 1.8 rebounds.
Zachary Weinberger, a Miami Heat reporter for Clutchpoints, posted the video on X and captioned it with: Miami Heat’s Josh Richardson practicing shots with now coach Wayne Ellington guarding him. Cool to see! #HeatCulture
Wayne Ellington at the Heat
Miami Heat’s Josh Richardson practicing shots with now coach Wayne Ellington guarding him. Cool to see! #HeatCulture pic.twitter.com/AULTzYLZOP
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) October 5, 2023
When asked what it was like to have his former teammate as his coach, Richardson responded, “Just being able to work with him every day and take all the advice he gives me is great.”
Meanwhile, Heat’s head coach Erik Spoelstra also said that it was likewise surreal for him to now have Ellington as the player development coach in the Heat.
“It’s surreal. I’m sure it is for the guys. I mean Wayne and I obviously talked during the summer and then we decided that this was going to be a great opportunity,” Coach Spoelstra said, as per Weinberger.
“He has an incredible spirit. He’s a competitor. He wants to excel at everything he does. He wants to give back. He wants to metro. I think just his qualities of leadership and being a pro’s Pro, wanting to give back to people. I think it’s just tailor made for his profession. I’m really excited to be able to get it done,” he added.
Ellington spent 13 seasons with the NBA, and during that period he was able to play for nine teams, one of them being the Miami Heat.
He had his best Miami season in 2017-2018 when he averaged 11.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 0.7 steals per game in 77 regular season games, according to Heat Nation.
Ellington went on to elucidate the reasons why he was the perfect candidate for the Miami Heat coaching job.
“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.”
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The photo above is from a YouTube screengrab