Even if his actual on-court production at the NBA level has rarely suggested he really is one, Dion Waiters has always carried himself like a star.
It takes a special kind of confidence for a 21-year-old on a 24-win team to say he believes he can be the best shooting guard in the NBA, that he feels he’s “next up as far as shooting guards,” behind “Kobe [Bryant] and [Dwyane] Wade and those guys.” It’s precisely that sort of self-possession that leads you to dramatically clap your hands and call for LeBron James to come off the rock and let you cook, to look off a wide-open Kevin Love beyond the arc, and to hang onto the ball on the break instead of hitting a streaking Kevin Durant — earning some friendly (maybe?) eff-bombs in the process — all because you think you’re better equipped than two MVPs and a perennial All-Star to make magic happen.
Even after being shipped out of Cleveland and having to sign for pennies on the dollar in the cash-splashingest market in the history of NBA free agency after Oklahoma City rescinded his qualifying offer to make room for Russell Westbrook’s extension, the Philly-born Syracuse product has never seemed to waver in his belief that his name belongs on the marquee, in blindingly bright letters, alongside the game’s top attractions.
After a driving dunk by former Thunder teammate Kevin Durant to cap a 14-4 Warriors run and knot the game at 102 with 11.7 seconds left, Waiters got the ball with no timeouts left and a chance to be the hero. He crossed the half-court stripe and isolated against Klay Thompson, one of the game’s better on-ball perimeter defenders, letting the clock tick down as he held for the final shot. Waiters rocked Thompson to sleep with a slinky right-to-left crossover dribble between his legs, then pulled up from straight on, 25 feet out, and dropped a dagger on the Dubs.
Waiters drilled the pull-up 3 with 0.6 seconds remaining to send the American Airlines Arena crowd into hysterics. A missed Stephen Curry prayer later, and the Heat had earned a 105-102 win, handing the Warriors to just their seventh loss of the season … and as much as the fans in the stands appreciated the shot, though, it is difficult to imagine anyone enjoying the moment as much as Dion Waiters did.