There will be a player in the NBA Finals who will have the opportunity to win a championship ring regardless of who wins. LA Lakers guard Dion Waiters is that player. Before joining the Lakers in the NBA restart, Waiters played for the Miami Heat.

With both teams in the finals, he can receive a ring no matter what.

A look at Dion Waiters early years in the NBA

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Waiters had an impressive college career at Syracuse. He spent two seasons at Syracuse, and during his sophomore season, he had a breakout year as he averaged 12.6 points, 2.5 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game. Waiters was named the Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year and was a third-team All-Big East selection. He was also selected to the All-Big East Tournament team and the AP Honorable Mention All-American team. 

Even though Waiters did not start in college, he was still considered one of the top players in the draft. Despite not working out for any teams, the Cleveland Cavaliers selected him with the fourth overall pick in the 2012 NBA draft. He was selected after Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Bradley Beal. 

Waiters put together an impressive rookie season with the Cavaliers. He appeared in 61 games and started in 48 of them, averaging 14.7 points, three assists, and 2.8 rebounds. In his first season, he was the second-leading scorer on the team. He scored a career-high 33 points on January 14, 2013, against the Sacramento Kings. Waiters participated in the Rising Stars Challenge game during All-Star Weekend, and he came off the bench during that game and scored 23 points. He was named to the All-Rookie First Team and finished fifth in the Rookie of the Year voting. 

Waiters spent his first three seasons in Cleveland, where he was one of the team’s top players. In his three seasons with the Cavaliers, he averaged 14.3 points and shot 42 percent from the field.

Dion Waiters career after leaving Cleveland

Waiters was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in January of 2015. In 47 games, he averaged 12.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. The next season, Waiters appeared in his first NBA playoffs. He appeared in 18 games coming off the bench and averaged 8.4 points and 2.6 rebounds. Throughout his career, Waiters has been an effective role player, and he knows how to score from the perimeter and inside the paint.

After his brief stint with the Thunder, he signed with the Miami Heat in 2016. During the 2016-17 season, he was a starter for most of the season, averaging 15.8 points and 4.3 assists. In January of 2017, he was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week as he helped the Heat to a 4-0 record for the week, extending their winning streak to seven games. He averaged 23.3 points, 5.0 assists, and 4.5 rebounds during those four games. 

Waiters playing for the Heat and Lakers in 2020

During his time with the Heat, Waiters dealt with multiple injuries, and he even spent time with the G League affiliate Sioux Falls Skyforce for a rehabilitation assignment. Waiters started the 2019-20 season with the Heat but missed a good amount of games due to multiple suspensions. He made his season debut in January against the Memphis Grizzlies scoring 14 points.

The next month the Heat traded Waiters to the Grizzlies, and the Grizzlies waived him not too long after. So Waiters was out of basketball for almost a month, and then the Lakers decided to sign him in March. He scored 11 points in his Lakers debut against the Clippers on July 30. Waiters has not appeared in many games since joining the Lakers, but one thing he’ll have the chance to do is receive a championship ring, and that’s if the Lakers win or lose. Since Waiters started the season with the Heat, he can receive a ring with them too if they decide to do that. So it could be a win-win situation for Waiters when the finals are over.