The Orlando Magic seem to be in the market for a point guard. The Magic reportedly were among many teams inquiring about Goran Dragic.
The NBA rumor mill is going to begin turning faster and faster as each day passes heading toward the Feb. 23 trade deadline.
Sites like Orlando Magic Daily will spend plenty of ink (keyboard taps, whatever the equivalent is) talking about who the team should acquire and what needs the Orlando Magic need to fill. And that will only increase as the deadline draws nearer — and after every loss.
The Magic said they would be active in trade discussions. There is nothing to suggest they are not, even as they wait to make their move. The hope for them is it does not come too late — and this road trip will play a big role perhaps in determining when to pull the trigger on a deal.
Orlando is sniffing around, that much is clear.
The latest target? Point guard Goran Dragic.
Zach Lowe of ESPN.com reports the Miami Heat have fielded offers for Dragic and are asking for a high price. One of those teams was indeed the Orlando Magic.
"Flipping Dragic for future assets was their most obvious path to the bottom, but Miami’s injury situation has gotten so ugly, they don’t even have to do that! They’re 11-29, ahead of only the Nets. 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."
As Lowe intimates, the Magic are not the only team interested in the veteran point guard.
The Heat have quickly sunk to the bottom of the standings in the entire league and not just the Eastern Conference. At 11-29, Miami is 14th in the Eastern Conference and behind only the Brooklyn Nets in the Lottery pecking order.
It feels like the Heat, now that Chris Bosh is ruled out for the season (and likely about to get cut once it is economically advisable to do so) and Justise Winslow is out for much of the rest of the season, are ready to tear things down and rebuild.
A big step toward doing that would be shedding the $54.3 million remaining on his three-year contract (that last year is a player option). And Dragic can still contribute.
And Dragic can still contribute. He is averaging 19.0 points per game and 6.5 assists per game while making 40.8 percent of his 3-pointers and posting a 50.5 effective field goal percentage. The 30-year-old point guard is still going very strong and should be able to man the role of starting point guard well for a few more years.
The Magic are reportedly in the market for a point guard. In the last round of rumors, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reported the team was down on Elfrid Payton. Indeed, Elfrid Payton has been in and out of the starting lineup throughout this season. He does not seem to have taken the step forward to establish his role with the team.
Orlando could certainly use an upgrade at point guard if the team wants to make a Playoff push this year. And, perhaps, moving forward to next year.
According to Lowe, the Heat are still holding out for a big offer at the moment. They gave up a lot to get Dragic. They do have to get this deal right to kickstart their rebuild with the Draft pick they have to get right — those two picks they sent to the Phoenix Suns come due after this season.
Next: Five key trade deadline targets for the Orlando Magic
It seems this may be a rumor that resolves itself closer to the deadline. Do not be surprised if a player like Dragic is one the Magic end up targeting.