By his own estimation, Eddie Jones has been insignificant most of this season.

It took one of Heat coach Pat Riley's more moving statements to rekindle something in Miami's gunner and force him to change.

"Coach is always speaking about mattering," Jones said. "Do you matter to the rest of these teams in the league? I think it hit home with me. Do I matter?

"I felt like guys didn't respect me. I see what other guys are doing for other ball clubs. I want to make things happen for this ball club. I want to matter."

Riley's words, along with some playbook tinkering, have made Jones more meaningful to the Heat. He's the team's leading scorer with 18.7 points a game, and he's increased that to 22.2 points during the team's six-game win streak.

Jones matters. And it's helping Miami attempt to make something out of a miserable season.

"He's had a number of runs, but now he is really playing, I think, at the top of his game," Riley said. "I mentioned (Tuesday) night that I think Alonzo (Mourning) should probably be considered for the All-Star team. Without a doubt, Eddie Jones should be out there with the other (shooting) guards in this league, too.

"Most of those other two-guards in the Eastern Conference are guys who have a dominance of the ball, where they get up to 30 shots a game. Eddie's not in that situation, so he's been playing very consistent basketball, making big shots for us, getting us off to good starts."

It wasn't long ago that Jones looked to be playing his way out of Miami's long-term plans. While he was putting up numbers and big shots, the Heat weren't winning. Trade rumors began to circulate, and it looked like Jones would better fit as a complementary piece to a winning team like Dallas or Los Angeles.

Jones was aware of the trade possibilities.

"I've always looked at it the same way," Jones said. "It's like coach said, we're not above being on a losing team or losing like this. Well, there's nobody above being traded. That doesn't bother me, I've been there before."

Jones decided to deal with something that had been bothering him -- his own play. He was putting up good numbers, but may have taken on too much of the scoring burden.

With Jim Jackson's arrival, Riley was forced to make some changes in the offense, and Jones benefitted. But more important to Jones' resurgence has been his fresh approach.

It also helps that Mourning has become more of a force inside. Jones' impressive play has coincided with Mourning's improvement in the middle. Suddenly Jones and Mourning look like a pair that can work well together for a long time.

"I've always been a player that plays the game well with a big man," Jones said. "It makes things a lot easier for you as a guard, especially a big man at Zo's level. They've got to respect him down there. They've got to help. I know teams aren't leaving me, but just for that little second that they stunt off of me, it just creates offense for me."

Riley threatened earlier in the season to move players if the losing continued. Yet he stuck with them even as Miami was 18 games under .500.

"If I really felt something had to be done, I would've done it," Riley said. "But unless something presents itself that is really good, or you could create something that is really beneficial, then you just take your hit and wait until the deadline. You wait until the draft. You wait until the summer. We've got some very good assets on this team, and I'm not going to, just because we've had a losing two months, just do something that's crazy."