The Miami Heat re-signed guard Wayne Ellington today.
“It’s great to have Wayne back,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “He is one of our leaders. We are very pleased that he made the choice to stay. It means a lot to us.”
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, “Ellington agreed to a one-year, $6.3 million contract, matching his salary from this past season. Because of the one-year term of the deal and Ellington’s status as a Bird Rights free agent next summer, his contract comes with a no-trade clause, requiring his permission for a move during the 2018-19 season.”
Ellington, who was originally signed by the HEAT on July 10, 2016, appeared in 77 games (two starts) with Miami last season and averaged 11.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 26.5 minutes while shooting 40.7 percent from the field, 39.2 percent from three-point range and 85.9 percent from the foul line. He connected on 227 three-point field goals, the most for a single-season in HEAT history while tying the sixth-most in the NBA last season. His 218 treys off the bench were the most by a reserve in NBA history and were 63 more than the next highest player off the bench in the league. He recorded his 259th triple in his 100th game as a member of the HEAT on December 5 vs. New York, the most in franchise history for a player’s first 100 games with Miami, surpassing the previous record of 233 treys by Tim Hardaway. He tallied 52 made three-point field goals in December, the most by any player during a single-month in team history. He then matched that by hitting 52 in the following month in January to tie his own record. Ellington hit at least six three-point field goals 12 times last season, the most for a single-season in team history, including a franchise-record eight off the bench twice, first on December 22 vs. Dallas and then again on April 11 vs. Toronto where he hit six of those in the fourth quarter, the most for a fourth quarter in team history. Additionally, he paired with Josh Richardson (127), Tyler Johnson (119), Goran Dragić (111) and Kelly Olynyk (106) to each connect on at least 100 three’s last season to become the first group of at least five HEAT players to accomplish the feat in a single-season.
