Goran Dragic closed his playing career as one of the best point guards in Miami Heat history. Now, he’s taking on a new role with the Heat in retirement.
While that role doesn’t have an official title yet, Dragic continues to make his presence felt around the organization as a mentor for current Heat players. That had Dragic working with 19-year-old Heat rookie guard Kasparas Jakucionis during the team’s first training camp practice on Tuesday at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton before returning to Europe on Wednesday.
“He has been coming around more often,” Spoelstra said of Dragic following Wednesday’s practice. “I tried to recruit him to the coaching staff and wisely he said no. But he said he does want to help, he does want to be involved. So we’re just working with him right now to find out what the best fit will be. We’re both open to the possibilities.”
One thing is for sure, Spoelstra wants Dragic to continue helping the Heat.
“I just like having him around,” Spoelstra said. “He’s not just exclusively working with Kas. He has great experience. Everybody respects him. He has a great way of communicating to guys. I think he just naturally fits a mentorship role. But he can also add value to scouting and other areas. I think we’ll be able to make, hopefully, something work for both sides.”
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The Heat already has a few former players on the payroll. Alonzo Mourning and Udonis Haslem are in executive roles; Chris Quinn, Malik Allen, Caron Butler and Wayne Ellington are on the coaching staff; and Keith Askins and Glen Rice work in the scouting department.
Dragic, 39, spent seven seasons with the Heat after being dealt to Miami in the middle of the 2015-16 season. But he didn’t end his NBA career with the Heat, as he was dealt to the Toronto Raptors as part of the Kyle Lowry deal during the 2021 offseason before eventually retiring following the 2022-23 season.
Dragic may not have gotten his wish to finish his career with the Heat, but he definitely left his mark on the organization. He ranks among the Heat’s all-time leaders in field goals made (10th), three-point shots made (seventh) and assists (fourth).
Dragic, who is from Slovenia, averaged 16.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game while shooting 45.7% from the field and 36.5% from three-point range in 391 (282 starts) regular-season games with the Heat.
One of Dragic’s best stretches with the Heat came during the team’s 2020 playoff run to the NBA Finals in the Disney bubble amid the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Heat fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in the championship series. He averaged a team-high 20.9 points to go with 4.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game while shooting 45.2% from the field and 36.3% on threes in the first three rounds of the playoffs before tearing the plantar fascia in his left foot in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Dragic, who was drafted in the second round in 2008, appeared in one All-Star Game during his NBA career, and it came in 2018 as a member of the Heat.
“That just shows I’m getting older in this league, which is scary,” Heat center Bam Adebayo said Wednesday of having Dragic around the team after spending four seasons as his Heat teammate. “I’m not the young fella anymore. Well, I’m young in age, but in years I’m not the young fella anymore. Seeing Goran, obviously sharing that bond of we’ve been in battles together. Seeing him communicate with the younger group, it doesn’t do anything but help our team, at the end of the day.
“We love when guys come back and they share their knowledge and share what they had to go through. The old times of how we used to play and how it’s changed now. So it’s beneficial for sure.”
BARKOV MAKES AN APPEARANCE
Florida Panthers star Aleksander Barkov was a guest at Wednesday’s Heat practice in Boca Raton.
Barkov, who is expected to miss seven to nine months after undergoing surgery last week to repair injuries to the ACL and MCL in his right knee, was on crutches as he watched the Heat work at FAU.
“It’s very inspiring,” Spoelstra said of having Barkov at practice.
Barkov and the Panthers have won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, and he has been among the best players on those teams.
“It has been an electrifying run that they’ve had the last three seasons, and he’s a major part of it,” Spoelstra continued on Barkov. “Yes, he has the talent. But then when you start diving into what everybody says about his character, his leadership, his mentorship. He’s about all the right things, but he moves a locker room because of what he’s about. That’s real talent. I see those kinds of possibilities with Bam. But everybody else. It’s inspiring to see that.
“And it is heartbreaking. You see him in crutches. But then you talk to him, and he says, ‘No worries, I’ll be back in five or six months.’ I love that spirit. I love that guy. I love everything he’s about.”
INJURY UPDATES
The Heat practiced without three guards on Wednesday.
Tyler Herro is expected to be out until at least mid-November after undergoing surgery on his left ankle earlier this month.
Pelle Larsson has missed the Heat’s first two training camp practices and has been labeled by the team as day-to-day after suffering a left quad contusion in his final EuroBasket game with Sweden on Sept. 6. He’s hopeful he’ll be ready and available for the Heat’s regular-season opener against the Orlando Magic on Oct. 22.
“We’re just going day-by-day with the training staff, getting better,” Larsson said Wednesday. “I feel a lot better than I did like a week ago, so I’m not sure what to say time-wise. But I’m feeling pretty close.
Terry Rozier was held out of Wednesday’s practice after straining his left hamstring while running sprints at the end of Tuesday’s session. He expects to return to practice next week.
“It won’t keep me out for too long,” Rozier said Wednesday. “Definitely won’t. I think I should be back on the court by next week, hopefully. But like I said, it’s up to the medical staff. If it was up to me. I would try to push it today. But obviously they’re not going to let that happen. I’m just trusting them.”
The Heat opens the preseason on Saturday against the Magic in Puerto Rico.