Goran Dragic Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Walker, Dragic, Fultz, Bryant

February 13th, 2019 at 8:41pm CST by Arthur Hill

It’s not a guarantee that he’ll stay with the Hornets, but Kemba Walker is serving as Charlotte’s unofficial host for All-Star Weekend, writes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. “Welcome everyone to my city!” Walker tweeted today as a greeting to the thousands of visitors headed to Charlotte for three days of festivities.

“This city has embraced me so much over the years,” Walker said. “Allowed me to be who I am. Allowed me to play through my mistakes early in my career, to become the player I am today. The fans have just been top notch, and I respect that because we haven’t been a top organization, haven’t gone to the playoffs every year. … Through that, they still embrace us, still embrace me. You have to respect that.”

Walker, who holds nearly every franchise scoring record, will be one of the hottest names on this year’s free agent market. A three-time All-Star, he is in the middle of his most productive season, averaging career highs with 25.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists per night. Despite Walker’s affection for Charlotte, Bonnell states that it’s hard to predict what will happen this summer.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Heat guard Goran Dragic is “making a lot of progress” after having knee surgery in December, but coach Erik Spoelstra tells Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald there’s still no timetable for his return. Miami has been expecting him to be ready soon after the All-Star break. In the same story, Spoelstra says Ryan Anderson, who has only played two minutes since being acquired from the Suns, is ready for a larger role if needed.
Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac, both top six selections in the 2017 draft, have a chance to prove themselves with the Magic after battling injuries early in their careers, notes Roy Parry of The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando’s front office believes Fultz, who was acquired from the Sixers last week, can become a standout point guard because of his strength, explosiveness, court vision and playmaking.
Wizards center Thomas Bryant reached starter criteria this week by starting his 41st game of the season, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The qualifying offer for the upcoming free agent has been increased to $3MM and Washington’s cap hold has been raised as well. Dwight Howard was supposed to be the starting center after signing with the Wizards last summer, but Bryant seized the opportunity when Howard was injured.

Heat Notes: Johnson, McGruder, Waiters, Johnson

January 27th, 2019 at 5:00pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

The Heat have had to use countless different lineup combinations throughout the season as players have come and gone due to injuries, but recently it has been Tyler Johnson that has become a key staple in the starting lineup.

As Ira Winderman writes for The Sun-Sentinal, Johnson has provided an energetic approach that has made him a perfect fit for the starting lineup, especially as Erik Spoelstra continues to look for ways to jumpstart his team.

The Heat have made several significant changes in the wake of Goran Dragic‘s injury, most notably converting Justise Winslow to being the team’s primary ball-handler and creator.

There’s more from the Heat:

Ira Winderman also wrote about the amount of lineup changes the Heat have had to deal with this season and how certain players like Rodney McGruder have continued to adjust on a nightly basis.
As Dion Waiters continues to work his way back from an extended injury absence, he firmly believes that in order for him to get back to his highest level of play, simply being on the court and receiving minutes is a must.
As the Heat continue to shuffle through starting lineups, James Johnson‘s struggles continue to stand out. Ira Winderman discusses if there is a path to salvage Johnson as a starter moving forward.

Goran Dragic Undergoes Knee Surgery

December 19th, 2018 at 12:26pm CST by Luke Adams

12:26pm: Dragic has undergone surgery to clean up his right knee, the Heat announced in a press release. According to the team, the veteran guard is expected to be out until about the All-Star break, which coincides with the two-month timetable suggested by Wojnarowski (as noted below).

11:31am: Heat guard Goran Dragic is set to undergo a scope on his troublesome right knee, says Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter links). According to Jackson, it was determined that Dragic would undergo the procedure after his knee failed to respond to rest and treatment.

No specific timeline has been set yet for Dragic’s return, but ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) hears from a source that Miami’s starting point guard is expected to miss the next two months. The Heat figure to provide an official update on Dragic’s recovery timetable after he has formally undergone the procedure.

It has been a tough season so far for the Heat and for Dragic, who has been limited to just 14 games. In those games, he’s averaging 15.3 PPG and 4.9 APG with a .410 FG% and .314 3PT%. Both of those shooting percentages would be the second-worst of his 11-year NBA career.

As for the Heat, they were widely viewed as a playoff team in the East entering the season, but are currently outside the top eight, with a 13-16 record. While the club is only one game out of a postseason spot, the fight for the playoffs will be even more challenging with Dragic sidelined for the foreseeable future.

Miami’s roster is somewhat thin on traditional point guards behind Dragic, but they have a number of players who can handle the ball. Josh Richardson, Rodney McGruder, Tyler Johnson, Justise Winslow, and Dwyane Wade are among the players who could take on adjusted responsibilities or roles during Dragic’s absence.

Injury Notes: Markkanen, Howard, Dragic, More

November 19th, 2018 at 2:06pm CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans point guard Elfrid Payton is expected to be sidelined for about six weeks as he recovers from finger surgery, as we relayed earlier today. While the news on Payton is today’s most notable injury update so far, there are items to pass along on several other health issues that could affect teams’ lineups and rotations. Let’s dive in and round up a few…

Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen, who has yet to make his season debut, participated in the non-contact portion of the Bulls’ practice today, head coach Fred Hoiberg confirmed (Twitter link). A return isn’t imminent for Markkanen, but it sounds like the injury-ravaged Bulls are moving closer to getting him back on the court. We heard last week that the youngster’s injury recovery was taking longer than initially anticipated.
The Wizards‘ weekend, which featured a pair of home losses, went from bad to worse, as the team’s big offseason acquisition, Dwight Howard, re-aggravated his glute injury and left Sunday’s game early. Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington has the story on Howard, who didn’t participate in Monday’s practice (Twitter link).
Heat guard Goran Dragic had his right knee drained this morning and will miss at least the next two games, the team announced today (via Twitter). The hope is that the inflammation in Dragic’s knee will subside and it won’t be a long-term issue.
James Johnson returned to action for the Heat on Sunday, appearing in his first game of the 2018/19 season. As Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel relays, head coach Erik Spolestra said that Johnson, who picked up five fouls in 15 minutes, “needs game minutes to get into rhythm.”
Pacers guard Victor Oladipo will miss the team’s next game, but doesn’t view his right knee injury as serious, per J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link). “A little sore, but I’m good,” Oladipo said.

Southeast Notes: Walker, Heat, Wizards

November 18th, 2018 at 4:50pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

After Kemba Walker‘s explosive 60-point performance Saturday against the 76ers, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer argues that the Hornets shouldn’t overthink things, and should offer Walker the maximum allowable contract this summer. Walker will be an unrestricted free agent as he enters his age-29 season, and Bonnell makes a case for the importance of keeping the point guard around, despite the team’s struggles in recent years.

Walker is having a career season, averaging 28.7 points and 6.1 assists per game, and is certainly capable of taking over any game with his scoring ability. Walker would certainly be expensive — his full, five-year max projects to be worth $189MM+, unless he makes an All-NBA team this season, in which the deal could be worth up to $221MM. However, Hornets owner Michael Jordan has shown that he isn’t afraid to spend to keep players in Charlotte, and Bonnell argues that this instance should be no exception for the team’s leader.

There’s more from the Southeast division:

After the Nets defeated the Wizards on Friday, former Wizard Jared Dudley suggested that the team is in need of a shake up, according to Ben Standig of NBC Sports Washington. Much of the Wizards’ core that played with Dudley in 2016 is still on the roster, but the team hasn’t had consistent success in several years.
Goran Dragic may be out for an extended period due to a right knee issue, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. The Heat are still without Dion Waiters and could use Dragic’s scoring and playmaking abilities as they look to bounce back from a slow start.
Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald hits on several Heat-related topics, including the conditioning of James Johnson and Waiters and the lack of interest from the team as it relates to adding Carmelo Anthony to the rotation.

Details On Rockets’, Pelicans’ Trade Offers For Butler

November 12th, 2018 at 12:29pm CST by Luke Adams

A report over the weekend indicated that the Timberwolves had three trade offers on the table for Jimmy Butler before ultimately deciding to pull the trigger on a Sixers package headlined by Robert Covington and Dario Saric. In their latest report for The Athletic, Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic provide some details on the other two offers Minnesota was considering, which came from the Rockets and Pelicans.

According to Charania and Krawczynski, the Rockets – who had previously offered four first-round picks attached to Brandon Knight and Marquese Chriss – adjusted their proposal to make it more appealing to Tom Thibodeau, who remains in win-now mode. Houston’s offer featured Eric Gordon, Nene, and two first-round picks, sources told The Athletic. It’s not clear what sort of protections would have been on those first-rounders, or whether any other pieces were involved.

As for the Pelicans, they weren’t mentioned often over the last couple months as a serious suitor for Butler, but they were engaged in talks with Minnesota at the end of the process. Charania and Krawczynski report that New Orleans’ package was headlined by Nikola Mirotic and an unprotected first-round pick. Again, it’s unclear what other pieces would have been included in such a deal — Mirotic’s salary wouldn’t have been enough to match Butler’s on its own.

The full report from Charania and Krawczynski is excellent, providing a timeline of the Butler saga from mid-September right up until today. It’s worth checking out in full if you have a subscription to The Athletic.

Here are a few more highlights from the piece:

Friday’s game was viewed as a fork in the road for both the Timberwolves and Butler. We previously heard that Thibodeau and GM Scott Layden decided after that game that Butler had played his last game for the team — it sounds like Butler had made up his mind too. According to Charania and Krawczynski, the 29-year-old had decided to begin sitting out indefinitely after that game if Minnesota didn’t trade him.
Thibodeau subsequently told his staff after Friday’s game that they had to move Butler, sources tell The Athletic. In fact, the Timberwolves nearly held the All-NBA swingman out of Friday’s game because they already had traction on a potential deal.
The Heat‘s original offer for Butler included Goran Dragic, Justise Winslow, and a draft pick, per Charania and Krawczynski. Miami later extended Winslow and put Josh Richardson into an offer. However, when a deal involving Richardson fell apart, the Heat pulled him off the table and never included him in another offer.

Heat Not Worried About Lack Of True Point Guards On Roster

November 3rd, 2018 at 3:58pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Goran Dragic was expected to return to the court today but because of lingering foot pain, he won’t practice with the Heat nor play in the game against the Hawks tonight.

“I feel like it’s frustrating but just need to think about the future. So it’s still sore, so hopefully, go day by day and see what happens,” Dragic said (via Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel).

Miami hopes Dragic will be able to play against Detroit on Sunday, though the team will continue to take the long view rather than rushing him back on the court. While Dragic is the only true point guard on the roster, coach Erik Spoelstra believes the team has all it needs despite not having another traditional floor general.

“We have a lot of ball handlers,” Spoelstra said. “If anything, our roster has as much depth with ball handling and playmaking as any conventional team would with specific point guards.

“Additionally, the league is changing. It really is becoming less position oriented. I’m having enough challenges getting the ball spread around to guys. It seems like half of my roster wants to bring the ball up and initiate offense. So when Goran is out, it will give other guys opportunities to do that. But that extends to our frontcourt. We have frontcourt players that also handle the ball quite a bit.”

Miami had a Briante Weber, an experience, defensive-minded point guard, on the roster during training camp but elected to release him.

Woj: Wolves’ Asking Price For Butler Too High

September 27th, 2018 at 11:25am CST by Arthur Hill

11:25am: Butler hasn’t joined the Wolves for training camp yet and has asked to sit out until he has been traded, Wojnarowski and Lowe report in a full story.

8:51am: Little progress has been made in Jimmy Butler trade talks because teams believe the Timberwolves are asking too much in return, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Minnesota owner Glen Taylor hopes to get a deal get done soon, but the organization is holding out for an offer that provides quality veterans, top prospects, future assets and cap relief. The price has been too high so far for all the teams interested in Butler, including the Heat, who are said to be the most aggressive. Because Miami is well over the cap, it is unable to offer anything in the way of cap relief, notes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel (Twitter link).

Sources tell Wojnarowski they’re skeptical that coach/executive Tom Thibodeau wants to part with Butler, even after Taylor’s mandate. ESPN colleague Zach Lowe adds that it’s not possible to exaggerate “how volatile things are in Minnesota right now.” (Twitter link)

Wojnarowski also reported last night that the Suns, who are in the market for a point guard, looked into getting involved to help facilitate a three-team trade, but decided what the Wolves were asking was “far too steep” (Twitter link). There hasn’t been any communication about sending Jeff Teague or Goran Dragic to Phoenix, but that could still happen if Minnesota and Miami make progress on trade talks.

It has been nine days since Butler met with Minnesota’s front office and issued his trade request. Taylor wanted to get a deal done quickly to “avoid a circus” in training camp, but the situation doesn’t appear close to a resolution. Miami is reportedly Butler’s first choice among trading partners, but so far that hasn’t made a difference.

Suns’ Search For Point Guard Could Overlap With Butler Sweepstakes

September 26th, 2018 at 12:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns‘ pursuit of a point guard on the trade market could result in them getting involved in the Jimmy Butler sweepstakes as a facilitator, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Keith Smith of RealGM.com first reported (via Twitter) that the Suns, like the Kings, were open to the idea of helping facilitate a three-team Butler trade.

As Wojnarowski details, if the Timberwolves and Heat were to make a trade involving Butler and Goran Dragic, it could open the door for Minnesota to send Jeff Teague to Phoenix as part of the deal. The Suns are also known to have inquired on backup Wolves point guard Tyus Jones. It’s not clear how interested the Suns would be in landing Dragic – who has already had two stints in Phoenix – as part of a three-team trade with Minnesota and Miami, but that could also be an avenue the team explores.

The Kings may make a bit more sense than Phoenix as a third team in a potential Butler trade, since they have $11MM in cap room to work with, putting them in a better position to accommodate an unwanted contract. However, Sacramento would likely be after a first-round pick. The Suns are over the cap and would need to match salaries in any deal, perhaps using expiring contracts like Tyson Chandler‘s ($13.59MM) or Darrell Arthur‘s ($7.46MM).

The Suns have been on the lookout for a point guard since moving Brandon Knight to Houston in a trade last month. Besides Teague and Jones, some of the point guards cited as potential trade targets for Phoenix include Patrick Beverley, Cory Joseph, and Spencer Dinwiddie.

Heat Notes: Dragic, Olynyk, Stokes, Bosh

September 8th, 2018 at 6:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat may be willing to trade Goran Dragic, but only if they can get a first-round pick and some financial flexibility for next summer, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Dragic’s name was floated last week as a possible target for the Suns, who are without a veteran point guard after dealing Brandon Knight to the Rockets.

Dragic is the only established point guard on the Heat roster, but Winderman notes that Miami has a logjam in the backcourt, needing to find time for Dion Waiters, Tyler Johnson, Josh Richardson, Justise Winslow, Wayne Ellington, Rodney McGruder and possibly Dwyane Wade. The Heat, who are over the projected luxury tax for this season with nearly $127MM in guaranteed salary, could also benefit financially from unloading Dragic, who will make more than $18.1MM this year and has a $19.2MM player option for 2019/20.

Winderman passes along more Heat info in the same story:

Kelly Olynyk has committed to play a pair of World Cup qualifying games this month for the Canadian national team. Olynyk is among several NBA players on the roster for Canada, which hopes to qualify for the tournament for the first time since 2010. Olynyk’s games are set for Wednesday and September 17, so they won’t interfere with Miami’s training camp.
Jarnell Stokes is grateful for the opportunity to join the Heat in camp, even though he faces long odds to win a roster spot. The power forward played five games with Miami during the 2015/16 season and has a high opinion of the franchise. “They are very fair when it comes to trusting what they see,” Stokes said in a recent interview with J.D. Shaw of Def Pen Hoops. “A lot of guys go by numbers and politics, but you can pretty much trust that if you put in the work — guys like Tyler Johnson, Hassan Whiteside, Josh Richardson — these guys really did not have an opportunity at first. Miami is typically the spot that is able to trust in what they see.”
Former Heat big man Chris Bosh continues to express his desire to return to the NBA. The Georgia Tech alum, who hasn’t played since doctors discovered a recurrence of blood clots in 2016, said in an interview with ramblinwreck.com that he hopes to work toward a comeback this season. Because Bosh left the Heat over a medical issue and the final two years of his contract were removed from Miami’s cap, he is not permitted to rejoin the team.