Michigan Basketball: Duncan Robinson reaches NBA finals, makes history

Former Michigan basketball player Duncan Robinson will make history this week after helping the Miami Heat reach the NBA finals.

The career for former Michigan basketball player Duncan Robinson has been nothing short of a fairytale and Sunday night with the Miami Heat, the former Wolverine wrote another chapter.

The Heat, who were battling the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, were down by six points early in the fourth quarter as they attempted to clinch the series.

Following a timeout, Miami was able to regain the lead and the momentum. Robinson did his part down the stretch, scoring six of his 15 points in the final five minutes, burying a pair of 3-pointers. He made five total for the game.

Miami won the game and the series, meaning Robinson, who came to Michigan basketball after transferring from Division III Williams College, will play and start in the NBA Finals on Wednesday.

And according to Zach Shaw of 247 sports, Robinson will become the first basketball player to ever play in the DIII national title game, the D1 title game and now, the NBA Finals.

It’s beyond incredible, especially when you consider Robinson didn’t even start his senior year for the Wolverines. He came off the bench was the Big Ten’s Sixth Man of the Year.

After going undrafted in the NBA, Miami took a chance on Robinson. His 3-point shot was always his best asset, but his size at 6-foot-9, allows him to contribute in other ways.

Robinson played 15 games for the Heat last season, playing on a two-way contract. Then, he was signed to a full-time deal with Miami and early in the year, he became a starter. He started 68 of 73 games for Miami this season and averaged 13.5 ppg, while shooting 44.6 percent from deep.

That’s percentage is even more impressive when you realize that Robinson attempted more than eight 3-pointers a game. He ranked 4th in the NBA in shooting percentage beyond the arc and 2nd in made 3-point field goals with 270.

Not bad for a guy who basically no one wanted coming out of high school. John Beilein took a chance on him and so did Erik Spoelstra, who is easily one of the NBA’s best coaches.

In an piece by Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, it was detailed how he implored Robinson to be a sharpshooter and instilled the confidence in Duncan that he simply didn’t have at Michigan.

Now, Robinson believes he is one of the best shooters in the world, which he is. And because of that, he will be among the five Miami starters for Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday.