NBA trade rumors: the Orlando Magic reportedly wants Goran Dragic
Since everyone on the Miami Heat team is supposed to be on the trading block, team president Pat Riley's phone must be ringing nonstop. The team has a handful of players that other teams would love to acquire. Need a center that can rebound and block shots like a man possessed? Then Hassan Whiteside is the answer. Need someone versatile enough to guard multiple positions? Then look for Justise Winslow.
Those two can help a team strengthen positions that are hard to fill. However, a number of teams also need a solid point guard to run their team, so that means Goran Dragic is going to have a lot of suitors as well.
ESPN's Zach Lowe has reported that a number of teams have already expressed interest in acquiring Dragic, and one of them happens to be their next-door neighbor, the Orlando Magic.
"Teams will express interest in Dragic ahead of the trade deadline — a bunch, including the Magic, already did, per league sources — but Miami can hold out for a hefty return. They gave up a ton for Dragic, and they'd need to save face in any teardown trade," Lowe said in his report.
Elfrid Payton is the starting point guard for the Magic right now, and he has played great the past three games. However, he has struggled at times this season, and the team wants him to be more consistent. They even started D.J. Augustin for a while before they moved Payton back to the starting lineup a couple of weeks ago. If the Magic are planning to acquire Dragic, that means they have stopped believing Payton will be their point guard of the future.
But before they pull the trigger, they will have to remember that Dragic isn't known for his defense, so that means he's going to be a poor fit in coach Frank Vogel's system as well. It should be noted that the team has already put Nikola Vucevic on the second unit for a number of games because of his poor defense, but he has played his way back to the starting lineup since then.
With this in mind, is acquiring Dragic going to be worth it?