Chris
Ellington took last season off, spending time with his family and using the opportunity to decide what he wanted to do next. What he learned was that he wanted to stay around the NBA. “That’s the most time I spent at home ever,” Ellington said of last season. “I got comfortable. I played my daddy duties, I was picking my kids up from school and dropping them off and all the things in between. It was fun and it was good and it was healthy for me. But at the same time, that whole time I was doing it, something was missing. Being back here in the gym, I think that’s exactly what it was.” The only players who are currently on the Heat’s roster who were also around during Ellington’s time with the Heat from 2016 to 2019 are Bam Adebayo, Josh Richardson and Robinson. “It’s funny, while I was playing I got asked that question a lot like, ‘Hey, when you’re done, you got to consider coaching,’” Ellington said. “Even on different teams that I went to. People were like, ‘When you’re done, you should really consider coaching.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t know. We’ll see. That’s a lot to manage.’ But here I am.” Now, Ellington feels like this is exactly where he should be. “I’m here to help, I’m here to serve,” Ellington said, “I’m here to help the guys continue to get better and ultimately help win a championship.
player wasn’t long, it was productive. Labeled the “The Man with the Golden Arm” because of his excellent three-point shooting, he shot 38.4 percent on 6.9 three-point attempts per game in 164 regular-season games (27 starts) with the Heat. Some of the best seasons of Ellington’s career came in Miami. He hit a career-high 227 three-pointers during the 2017-18 season to set a Heat record for the most three-pointers made by a player in a single season that Duncan Robinson has since surpassed.
