Getty Orlando Robinson of the Miami Heat had a standout Summer League.
Orlando Robinson’s strong Summer League showing is a good sign for the Miami Heat, who are going to need him to eventually become a solid rotational player.
In Miami’s five Summer League games, Robinson netted 25.8 points, hauled in 9.3 rebounds, dished out 3.8 assists and grabbed 1.5 steals per game while shooting 57.8% from the field. As a rookie last season, Robinson played in 31 games (one start) and finished with averages of 3.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 13.7 minutes per game.
Sure, competition in the Summer League is nowhere near as strong as it is during an NBA regular season, but Robinson’s offensive output in particular was beyond encouraging.
In an interview after Miami’s final summer league game, Robinson was asked if he felt he had done enough to get more time in Miami’s rotation, and he answered in the affirmative. “For sure. For sure I do,” he said. “I think my ability to stretch the floor, shoot the 3 and my quickness on defense, being able to get out on the perimeter and blitz and move my feet will allow me to get a lot of minutes with the Heat this year.”
Robinson Finished Summer League With a Bang
Orlando Robinson stuffs the stat sheet in the @MiamiHEAT win! #NBA2KSummerLeague
27 PTS (10-15 FG)
9 REB
6 AST
3 STL
In the Heat’s final Summer League matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers on July 16, Robinson played lights out, netting 27 points, 9.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 3.0 steals in the Heat’s 104-78 win.
Robinson said he wanted to “come out, give 100 percent effort and show what I’ve been working on this whole summer.” The 23-year-old center also credited “a lot of reps” for his success in the Summer League this year, and noted that the difference in his game now compared to a year ago.
“Playing off the ball, playing together with my teammates, learning how to play off the ball, because in college, I didn’t really do that,” he said. “In college, I didn’t really play off the ball, I was more on the ball. Here, I’m playing off the ball, so you put them both together, now it’s a mix of both, and that’s really hard to guard, really hard to deal with. So I think I found my niche in the NBA game now.”
That would be great for Miami, who would love Robinson to become the team’s No. 2 big behind All-Star bam Adebayo.
Robinson Named to All-Summer League First Team
The NBA 2K24 All-Summer League First Team:
𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗧
Keyonte George, @utahjazz
Sam Merrill, @cavs
𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗧
Orlando Robinson, @MiamiHEAT
Hunter Tyson, @nuggets
Cam Whitmore, @HoustonRockets
One of the best performers throughout the summer, Robinson was named to the All-Summer League First Team on July 17. The young big impressed around the league not just by scoring a lot of points, but by creating shots for others.
“I really like getting my teammates open,” Robinson said in reference to the six assists he handed out in the final Summer League contest, adding: “I got the dimes on me.” If the team is lucky and Robinson stays healthy while continuing to fine tune his game, Miami should be able to cash those dimes in soon.
The Heat went 3-2 in Summer League play. Training camp kicks off for Miami on October 3, so Robinson will have a few more months to fine tune his game.
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Heat’s Orlando Robinson Sends Strong Message After Dominant Summer League