How much longer will Goran Dragic be a member of the Miami Heat?
Chris Mannix of The Vertical reports the 30-year-old point guard isn’t opposed to a trade that would ship him away from South Beach.
“Dragic is open to a trade, league sources told The Vertical, and Miami has pursued that option,” Mannix wrote Thursday. “An early season swap with Sacramento for Rudy Gay fell apart when the Heat sought Darren Collison, sources said, and teams that have probed Miami about Dragic have found the Heat open to offers.”
The Heat have failed to live up to expectations this season and are destined for a high lottery pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. Any move that speeds up their rebuild should be considered.
Dragic is a good player — he’s averaging 19.1 points, 6.7 assists and four rebounds per game this season — but he’s not a franchise-cornerstone talent.
The problem in moving Dragic is teams might be hesitant to give up good assets for a player on the wrong side of age 30 and signed through 2020 at a salary cap hit above $17 million. That said, the salary cap should only go up in the foreseeable future because of the league’s new television contracts.
Pat Riley has worked miracles several times as the architect of the Heat roster, and Dragic is his latest challenge.
Thumbnail photo via Steve Mitchell/USA TODAY Sports Images
