When Cole Swider signed a two-way deal with the Los Angeles Lakers last year, one of the first people he texted was fellow three-point sharpshooter Duncan Robinson.
“I hit him up and I said, ‘Hey, man. I just want to say thank you,’” Swider recalled. “Because [Lakers general manager] Rob Pelinka had mentioned he passed up on Duncan in the predraft process and he didn’t want to let that happen again. So that was part of the reason that I got the two-way. So I just texted Duncan and I said, ‘Thank you.
Robinson, 29, is already one of the Heat’s biggest undrafted success stories, signing a two-way deal with Miami in the summer of 2018 and eventually earning a five-year contract worth $90 million from the Heat as a free agent in the summer of 2021. Along the way, Robinson established himself as the franchise leader for the most career three-pointers made by a Heat player with 825 through his first five NBA seasons.
Swider, 24, is simply hoping to make the Heat’s regular-season roster to have a chance at becoming the organization’s next big three-point shooting undrafted success story after signing an Exhibit 10 tryout contract with Miami in August. He was released by the Lakers this past offseason despite shooting an impressive 43.6 percent on 7.6 three-point attempts per game in 27 games for the Lakers’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, last season.
“I didn’t know that,” Robinson said with a smile when informed that Swider also has a podcast. “I love it. That’s awesome. Good stuff. I’ll have to tune in.
