Keshad Johnson has already shown off a lot of his basketball skills as a member of the Miami Heat’s summer league team. On Saturday, the undrafted forward showed off his listening skills.
“I thought we were taking too many layups,” Heat player development coach and summer league head coach Dan Bisaccio said. “So our staff said, ‘You got to make them dunk it.’ So we just kind of put an emphasis in practice on a couple of plays like, ‘Hey, just dunk it. Whatever you have to do, just dunk it. I don’t want to see these layups, floaters. Come in there and dunk it.’”
Johnson, 23, did just that in the final seconds of the third quarter of the Heat’s 119-114 win over the Boston Celtics to open Las Vegas Summer League, throwing down a ferocious dunk that could end being one of the top highlights from this year’s summer league.
“It was a really thunderous message at the end of a quarter,” Bisaccio said, with the Heat set to play its second of at least five Las Vegas Summer League games on Monday against the Oklahoma City Thunder (6 p.m., ESPNU).
It started when Johnson came away with a steal off a deflection near the Celtics’ basket with 3.9 seconds left in the period. Johnson didn’t immediately look to just throw up a full-court heave or allow the third-quarter clock to run out.
“I knew there was time on the clock,” said Johnson, who the Heat signed to a two-way contract after he went undrafted out of Arizona last month. “When I got the ball, I looked at the clock, there were four seconds. ... So I knew I had four more dribbles for four seconds.”
Johnson made the most of those four dribbles, racing up the court before using his elite athleticism to take off from just past the free-throw line. The result was a vicious dunk over two Celtics defenders as the final third-quarter buzzer sounded, pushing the Heat’s lead up to seven points entering the fourth quarter.
“I took the first dribble, I had momentum that I could make it all the way down the court,” Johnson said. “Then kept it, and I just took off.”
The play opened some eyes, but Johnson already knew that he’s capable of producing highlight-worthy moments. He tied for the highest max vertical leap (42 inches) at this year’s NBA Draft Combine.
“I really go on instincts,” Johnson said. “I’ve done stuff like that my whole life. So it’s not really surprising at this stage. It’s the adrenaline. And that’s why I’m Showtime, that’s why I’m Showtime. I just put on the show and give myself the energy.”
The dunk was part of Johnson’s stat line of 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal in Saturday’s summer league win over the Celtics.
Johnson has already impressed with his ability to play different roles and defend different positions. He has shot 5 of 14 (35.7 percent) on threes and has racked up seven steals and four blocks through the Heat’s first four summer league games.
On Saturday, it was Johnson’s leaping ability that flashed.
“I just know my role,” he said. “I don’t need to go out there, go between the legs, none of that stuff. I just need to get from Point A to Point B, let everybody handle the rest.”
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