Heat's Dorell Wright taking baby steps

[Poe]

Miami Heat's Dorell Wright taking baby steps

 

Heat forward Dorell Wright credits his 1-year old son for the motivation it took to persevere through difficult times and transform from the teenage NBA rookie he was to the steady veteran he is today.

 

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Five years ago, Dorell Wright wasn't living like this.

 

Five years ago, when Wright was a 19-year-old still adjusting to the life of a young millionaire, he lived with a roommate in a Brickell condo so big and bare you could hear echoes. You could much easier find a spot to play video games on a huge TV screen than you could a place to sit and eat a meal.

 

Walking into Wright's current residence, a humble town house in Coconut Grove that he bought from former teammate Malik Allen after he was traded to Charlotte in 2005, is like rediscovering the man. ...

 

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QUESTIONS OF MATURITY

 

All the while, Wright didn't exactly handle matters with much maturity. But how could you expect maturity from a teenager who had almost everything he wanted.

 

``He was every bit of 18,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ``That's not unlike a lot of high school players that come in. They don't have any idea what they're getting into.''

 

Dwyane Wade -- who is a godfather to Devin, along with teammate Quentin Richardson -- has no problem describing the teenage version of Wright.

 

``He was a whiner,'' Wade said. ``Some young guys come in and you could tell everything's been given to them their whole lives, and when it's not, they don't know how to deal with it. He couldn't really take coaching. When someone would say something to him, he wasn't really open to it.''

 

Wright hardly denies it. He admitted he felt a bit entitled, like most high school players who were good enough to jump into the NBA at the time.

 

He readily admits that he and assistant coach Keith Askins were at odds constantly, as Wright would regularly question all the work he was put through.

 

He figured he was talented enough to survive if given the chance. And he would try to prove that every chance he got -- even if it was just a pregame walkthrough.

 

``One time I busted Eddie Jones' lip -- in a walkthrough,'' Wright said. ``He looked at me like, `Yo, tone it down.'

 

``What do they call it, thirsty? That's what I was. I was thirsty.''

 

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This is a good article on Dorell Wright and his steps towards maturity in the NBA. I'm starting to get a better understanding of why he's been buried on the bench for the past 6 years on the Heat. It was his maturity. He's always had the athleticism and the talent to become a great player in this league, yet his mind wasn't NBA-ready. Really, he should have gone to college first, where he probably would have developed into an NBA-ready player much faster than the 6 years it took while on the Heat.

 

But that's the past now. Dorell is a changed man. 19 points and 5 assists against the Kings 3 games ago, and he was the best player on the floor for Miami in their poor overall effort against the Grizzlies. He's earned his way 26+ minutes in each of the past three games becoming a key rotation player for this team, and he continues to show signs of getting better and better. I am very excited for Dorell as a player. At barely 24 years old, he's only beginning to prove his true potential.

Edited December 14, 2009 by Poe