Miami's Duncan Robinson on a record path from 3-point land

Duncan Robinson is about to collect a whole slew of records. Most 3-pointers by any player in eir of his first two NBA seasons. Most 3-pointers by a Miami Heat player in a season. And he’s alrey tied league record for most 3-pointers by an undrafted player in a season.

He’s t just going to break m. He might smash m. re are 20 games left in season, and Robinson is up to 225 3-pointers — most recent nine coming in Miami’s 116-113 win over Orlando on Wednesday night, a game in which he me seven in a row to end first half.

“If you took a poll on NBA players and asked who Duncan Robinson was coming into training camp, I would say probably 70% of league didn’t kw who he was,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Robinson wasn’t offended. If anything, he thinks his coach is low-balling that 70% estimate.

“I would probably say more than that,” Robinson said. “But , , that doesn’t bor me. You’ve got to expect that. path that I’ve taken is a little unconventional, but hopefully at this point I’ve garnered some respect in that regard.”

Heat record, perhaps just until Friday when Miami plays at New Orleans, belongs to Wayne Ellington; he me 227 in 2017-18 season. Kyle Korver has mark for a player in his second NBA season; he me 226 in 2004-05 campaign. And undrafted-player record h been held by Damon Jones, who me 225 for Miami in 2004-05.

It also bears ting that Robinson was unaware of Heat record; he asked Wednesday night after game what it was. So it's t like he's been chasing mark.

“It’s t a surprise,” Heat All-Star center Bam ebayo said of Robinson’s success. “When you see a guy do that over and over and over and his preparation and practice and when he’s in re by himself with coaches, it doesn’t shock you.”

Robinson is two behind Ellington, one behind Korver and is tied with Jones. At his current pace, and if he plays in all of Miami’s 20 remaining games, he would finish with 298 3-pointers — a total that, in NBA history, only Golden State’s Stephen Curry (three times) and Houston’s James Harden (once) have reached.

But in this 3-point-m NBA, a league that is on pace to smash single-season 3-point record for an eighth consecutive year, shooters are lifeblood. And Heat came into this season touting Robinson — who got most of his minutes last year in G League — as one of best shooters on planet.

y weren’t kidding.

“Some of it is times,” Robinson said. “I just went an entire game and I didn’t take a 2. That was unheard of years ago. re’s some inflation re, for sure. But that’s t to deflect credit. I’ve h a good shooting season. But it’s times. And I am aware that I might t have existed as an NBA player in 2005 or 2010, even. It’s all pretty humbling.”

Robinson’s path is remarkable: Division I scholarship offers out of high school led him toward playing his freshman season at Division III Williams College in Massachusetts, before Michigan brought him aboard for his final three collegiate seasons. He’s only player to appear in Division I and Division III national championship games.

He went undrafted in 2018, signed a summer-league deal with Heat and me 17 of his first 27 3-pointers. That was all Miami needed to see, and he’s been with Heat ever since. He appeared in only 15 NBA games last season (making only 10 3’s), and w he’s a starter on a team on pace to win 53 games this season.

Plus, he might even be a legitimate candidate for Most Improved Player.

“I think it’s really a remarkable story of persistence and how much he’s improved,” Spoelstra said. “It’s incredible.”