After playing 7 seasons with the Miami Heat and then briefly playing for the Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls, 37 year old Goran Dragic has announced his retirement from the NBA. Dragic played 14 seasons in the association, winning a Most Improved Player of the year award as a member of the Phoenix Suns in 2014 and a 2018 NBA All-Star with the Heat.
BREAKING: Former 7 year Miami Heat All-Star PG Goran Dragic has retired from the NBA. (via Shams)
Dragic, 37 years old, was the leading scorer for the Heat in that 2020 Finals run during the first year of the Jimmy Butler era
Thank you for EVERYTHING @Goran_Dragic a true loyal… pic.twitter.com/8dTdept1pT
— Hot Hot Hoops (@hothothoops) December 30, 2023
He finished with career averages of 13.3 PPG, 4.7 APG and 3.0 RPG on 46% shooting and 36% from three point range.
Dragic was acquired by Pat Riley and the Heat at the 2015 NBA trade deadline. Dragic was disgruntled in Phoenix, the team that drafted him, and fell in love with the Culture in Miami upon arrival.
Dragic averaged a career high 20.3 PPG in his last full season in Phoenix and also averaged 20.3 PPG during the 2016-2017 Heat season.
Here are his notable franchise statistic totals as a member of the Miami Heat:
2018 NBA All-Star in Miami as well. Was just always a true loyal professional for this Heat organization. One of the best PG’s in franchise history & a Heat lifer for sure🤝🔥 https://t.co/GMuZ7ogMQo
— Hot Hot Hoops (@hothothoops) December 30, 2023
The Dragon finished his Heat tenure top 3 in assists, as any true All-Star point guard would.
❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥 https://t.co/LWizqvbioy
— Hot Hot Hoops (@hothothoops) December 30, 2023
He has had so many memorable moments in the 305, including that underdog 5th seed NBA Finals run in 2020 in the bubble.
As the leading scorer for the team during that run, he was a killer from beyond the arc. He shot the ball so efficiently and even came up clutch with huge late game buckets.
Sadly, both Dragic and Bam Adebayo suffered injuries in that Finals against the LA Lakers and the short handed Heat lost the series in 6 games. It was clear that Miami was missing that star fire power to matchup against LeBron James, Anthony Davis and that Lakers squad.
I’ll go to my grave saying if Goran and Bam were healthy the Heat beat the Lakers in the bubble.
— Will Manso (@WillManso) December 30, 2023
Jimmy Butler and Dragic had a great relationship, and Dragic was Butler’s partner and running mate as a top player on the squad for the first season of the Butler era.
Besides that Finals year, Dragic also helped lead the Heat to 4 playoff berths in the 7 years he played here.
Dragic still lives in the city of South Florida and comes to home games throughout the season. Enjoy retirement Dragon and thank you for everything!
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Dragic highlights.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1741495914982727748
https://twitter.com/i/status/1741495914982727748
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Goran will have his farrewell game in summer here in Slovenia…I expect at least Luka and Jokic playing among others…. Heat players will attent too, I m sure. I ll go to the game, if I ll be around at that time.
Vagi your boy had a great career. Slovenians can be proud of him as a true professional on and off the court. Heat nation is glad to have had him for a few fun years.
Yes he did. We are very proud of him. Thank you.
The dragon will be missed. I loved his time with the heat, had great energy, taught our young players well. He was dynamic with the ball in his hands, i really loved seeing him in the fastbreak with jimmy and with wade. Also helped us get to finals, which we could of won if it wasn’t for the injuries. I hope he becomes another former player coach for us like butler, quinn,Wayne, and Malik. If he does he can help us bring Luka here lol. Also he can give jovic some tips. But anyways thank you goran !
Where’s my earlier post on Dragic?
Shoutout to the Dragon, who was traded to the Heat the same day the Chris Bosh kindney illness was diagnosed. It’s one of the greatest “what-ifs” in Heat history, right up there with the Eddie Jones/Brian Grant trade that happened the same season that Zo got sick.
Most everyone on HHH probably thinks of the 30-11 team when they think of Goran, and in hindsight, he as probably the best player of the Winslow/Waiters/Whiteside era.
When I think of Goran, my favorite memory was the playoff run in the bubble. That cemented his status as a top-3 point guard in Heat history (behind Hardaway, probably even with Mario) and maybe the best European player in Heat history?
Last but not least, it seems poetic that Precious got traded to the Knicks the same day Goran retired. I still don’t know how I feel about the Lowry trade, and part of me wishes those guys were still on the team. But in those past few years, the Heat have finished with a 1-seed, got to the ECF twice, and the NBA Finals once, so I guess I can’t argue with the results.
Interesting article. How can Cleveland’s biggest regret be signing Max Strus, the Laker’s be signing Gabe Vincent and Miami’s biggest regret be letting them both go. Looks like Pat did pretty good, especially when compared to the big mistakes other teams made (e.g., see Charlotte, Dallas, Detroit, Golden State, Clippers, Milwaukee, Orlando, Phoenix, etc.)
https://sircharlesincharge.com/posts/nba-offseason-move-every-team-beginning-regret/13?utm_campaign=FanSided+Daily&utm_source=FanSided+Daily&utm_medium=email&sc=e0273490fd355e2c28bdb25751d41af65a4dd80936ff00a80be9866c97887955
He was hypocritical on the heat, just another dummy. How can he sit there with a straight face and say that we should regret not resigning Gabe and strus. When the team is better, then also is the same breath say that both lakers and cavs, should regret signing strus, and Gabe. I get the lakers regret, but strus having a career year with cavs. He’s always shot around 34 percent from 3, even his last year with the heat. Plus cavs got so many injuries, they definitely need his scoring. But his take on the heat was terrible. Duncan has taken strus spot , and is playing better then strus. Duncan even shot better the strus in the playoffs last season. Also JJJ took Gabe spot and is already a better passer and shooter.
According to ESPN, Toronto is trading O.G. Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa, and Malachi Flynn to the New York Knicks in exchange for Canadian RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and a 2024 second round draft pick.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/trade-news-raptors-trade-anunoby-flynn-and-achiuwa-to-knicks/ar-AA1mfoBy?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=2c5bc0379bf447c6ab24abdf71a0318a&ei=7
Interesting article. Makes a lot of sense.
https://allucanheat.com/posts/what-miami-heat-need-to-leave-behind-in-2023/5?utm_campaign=FanSided+Daily&utm_source=FanSided+Daily&utm_medium=email&sc=e0273490fd355e2c28bdb25751d41af65a4dd80936ff00a80be9866c97887955
I have to paste the part of the article concerning Herro so some folks can see that the players they were so hot on are not really better choices than he is.
”Here’s how Tyler Herro’s stats compare with the two players he was mentioned in trade rumors for over the summer:
Herro: 24 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.3 steals while shooting 45.9% overall and 42.7% on 3s.
Damian Lillard: 26.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.1 steals while shooting 43.6% overall and 37.7% on 3s
Bradley Beal: 14.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 0.7 steals while shooting 44.9% overall and 42.9% on 3s. Has played in just six games for the Suns and will be sidelined for at least another week.
Herro’s stats are comparable, if not better than those of Lillard and Beal this season, and he’s just 23. Lillard is 33. Beal is 30. Both will be making twice as much as Herro through 2027. By then, both Lillard and Beal’s best basketball will be behind them while Herro will be rounding into his prime.
The Heat have to be happy with Herro’s progress this season. He’s averaging a career-high in points, shooting percentage, assists, and steals, and is finding a way to make the winning plays Erik Spoelstra talks so often about. The Heat told Herro that he wouldn’t be traded for a player who isn’t a future Hall of Famer, and people are seeing why. This is the best Herro has played in his career, and it still feels like he’s just scratching the surface. – Wes Goldberg”
Hey! Where’s my earlier comment?
I followed Dragic’s career from draft day in 2008 until now. I always loved his game and his ability to bring the best out of his teammates. I remember his days in Phoenix most, especially the 2013-2014 season, when he led a ragtag group of rejects, undrafted players and underperformers (not an all-star in the bunch) to a 48-34 record, only to miss the playoffs by one game. That year, the Western Conference had 7 teams with 50 or more wins. Dallas at 49-33 beat Phoenix out for the 8th playoff spot.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2014_standings.html
I followed Goran to Miami after the fiasco in Phoenix. For those of you who don’t know the story, in a nutshell, prior to the 2014-2015 season, the former Phoenix GM, Ryan McDonough, decided to bring in a third starting point guard, Isaiah Thomas, rather than building on the past season’s successes. Using Thomas, Eric Bledsoe and Goran, McDonough created what he called a “Hydra (three headed) offense” starting all 3 PGs at the same time, When that experiment failed miserably, he decided to use Goran as a combo SG/SF, having Bledsoe and Thomas share the PG/SG duties. This was after McDonough had previously committed to Goran that he would be the team’s primary PG. Goran became frustrated, unhappy and felt betrayed. He then demanded a trade. Phoenix accommodated him and traded him to Miami, where he became a fan favorite.
I was hoping Miami would bring Goran in as a “UD Type” player late in his career to function as an emergency point guard, mentor and locker room leader. But that was not to be. I still can see him joining the Heat one day as an assistant coach.
I will always remember Goran’s excellent play during the 2020 Playoffs in “The “Bubble.” Dragic scored a team-leading 29 points during a 117–114 overtime win over the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. After winning that series, in the 2020 NBA Finals they faced the Los Angeles Lakers. Dragić missed 4 games in the Finals due to a plantar fasciitis injury that he suffered in Game 1. Bam was also injured during the series. The Heat lost the series in six games.
Thank you Goran “The Dragon” Dragic for many memorable games and playoff moments. Good luck in the future. I hope to see you back on the Miami bench one day as a coach.
really nice post.