NBA fans age in terms of the players they watch and how they eventually take on different roles.
It can be interesting to watch a player in college get drafted, play his entire career, and then get a coaching or a front-office role.
That’s the case with guys like Wayne Ellington, who spent time at UNC before spending many years in the league, and he’s now an assistant coach for Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat.
For the past couple of years, the former sharpshooter has been working as a player development coach for the team he spent three years with, and it seems like it’s paid off pretty well for him.
Ellington led his young Heat team to the Summer League title, and he showed off his brand new ring after the game (via Tomer Azarly & ClutchPoints).
Heat coach Wayne Ellington shows off the Summer League Championship ring 💍
(via @TomerAzarly) pic.twitter.com/6JG9Yszn2w
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 23, 2024
Of course, championship rings for the Summer League have been a major subject of debate on social media.
Then again, that will be the peak of some of those guys’ careers, as they won’t have an opportunity to fulfill their dream of playing in the NBA, so it’s nice they at least get some sort of memorabilia and something to remember those days.
The Heat have one of the best player development systems in the entire league.
They’ve excelled at finding not-so-known or undrafted players and turning them into legitimate rotation players, and Ellington has plenty to do with that.
So, who knows? Perhaps they’ve already found their next diamond in the rough that could help them win an actual ring at some point.
