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Make no mistake — Goran Dragic is Miami Heat royalty. He may not have made multiple All-Star teams or brought a championship to South Beach, but he has nonetheless earned his spot alongside the likes of Wade, Bosh, the other guy, Zo, Hardaway, UD, Rice, Spo, the Godfather, et al.
As such, there has been a contingent of Heat Nation pining for his return ever since it became clear that getting Kyle Lowry would mean the end for the Dragon.
For that particular lot, there was cause for celebration on Tuesday. As reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Spurs — who just acquired Dragic from the Raptors in a deadline trade — have come to terms with the guard on a contract buyout. As a result, he’s a free agent once more.
The league insider further noted that “a slew of teams will now pursue the 14-year veteran.” But will the Heat actually be one of them? A team insider may have just dashed hopes that a reunion could be in the works.
Chiang Updates the Situation
Earlier this week, a league source told Heavy.com that the Heat could be in the mix once Dragic hit the open market.
“Everyone knows how much he loved his time in Miami, and how much Miami loved him,” they said. “Not sure the fit is there, but they’re going to go through the process at least.”
However, the Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang reports that Miami’s front office hasn’t exactly been making overtures toward their former player or his people. “As of Tuesday afternoon, the Heat had not yet expressed interest to Dragic’s camp in bringing him back this season, according to a league source,” he wrote.
Chiang namechecked the Bucks, Lakers, Mavericks and Warriors as teams expected to pursue the old Heat fave.
Dragic wasn’t really part of the mix in Toronto before he got traded, appearing in just five games this season. Last year, though, he logged a 13-4-3 line over 50 games with Miami, knocking down 37.3% of his triples along the way.
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The Heat’s Current Situation
While the idea that Dragic could return to the Heat may have seemed like a win-win proposition a few months ago, it probably makes less sense at this juncture. Gabe Vincent has emerged as a capable backup to Lowry and former All-Star combo guard Victor Oladipo looks to be on the verge of his own return.
The team is also lacking roster spots at the moment, having just converted Caleb Martin’s two-way pact to a standard NBA deal and re-signed Haywood Highsmith to another 10-day contract. As such, the Heat are currently at the 15-man roster maximum.
That said, they could pay Highsmith to go away early, or simply wait for his 10-day to expire and free up a spot for a buyout guy like Dragic. Again, though, several teams are expected to come hard at the floor general, and there may be other buyout options worth exploring.
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