The Miami Heat are near the basement of the Eastern Conference. Team president Pat Riley has already told fans that the rebuild is on and the team will move quickly to return to their winning ways.
Which means they could very well move on from veteran established players – like point guard Goran Dragic who is open to a trade according to Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports.
So could the Timberwolves land the veteran point guard? ESPN’s Zach Lowe thinks so.
“I would keep an eye on Minnesota for Goran Dragic,” Lowe said on his latest podcast.
Is he worth it?
Dragic is averaging 19 points, 6 assists and shooting a career-high 41 percent from 3-point land. The 30-year-old is making 14 million this season and is owed 54.3 million over the next three years.
He isn’t necessarily a shutdown defender, but he holds his own against whoever he’s guarding. Opponents are shooting 42 percent against Dragic which is 2 percent below the league average.
Of 139 guards who defend at least five shots per game, Dragic ranks 35th.
What would he cost?
It certainly would take more than a simple point guard swap for Ricky Rubio – who makes similar money and is under contract through 2019 – to land Dragic.
Lowe didn’t get into specifics on what the Timberwolves would give up. However Riley is an elite league executive and it would probably cost a potential lottery pick and an up-and-coming player like Zach LaVine or Andrew Wiggins.
Last November, there were reports that Tom Thibodeau was willing to trade one of the young stars on the Wolves for an established veteran.
A veteran presence like Dragic could do wonders for one of the youngest teams in the league.
