In the early morning of February 16, the Spurs officially announced that they had reached a buyout agreement with Dragic.
According to some subsequent supplementary reports, Dragic gave up about $820,000 in the buyout, which is not much relative to his $19.4 million salary this season and can be earned back through the next contract.
The buyout market is the last node after the trade deadline when teams can strengthen, and Dragic is almost a thriving presence in this year's buyout market, so where he goes has become particularly interesting.
According to ESPN's latest news, the Bucks, Bulls, Clippers, Nets and Lakers are all chasing Dragic, and Stein added that the Warriors are also interested in Dragic.
Good guys, the most flowing and championship-winning teams in the league are here, and Dragic's allure is evident.
Dragic's final decision was influenced by three factors: salary, competitiveness on the road to the championship, status and comfort in the team.
In fact, the salary of each team is similar, the bought out players are often joined the new team with a veteran base salary, even if there are teams willing to give more in order to show their sincerity, it will not go anywhere, basically negligible.
Second, the competitiveness on the way to the championship, Dragic is willing to give up part of his salary to be bought out, the biggest reason is obviously to want a championship.
Of the current teams, the Bucks are clearly at the top, they are defending champions and the roster is complete, the Big Three has not declined compared to last year, and even the self-confidence after the alphabet won the championship makes him look stronger.
The Bucks dared to send Di Vincenzo, Hood and Ojele back to Ibaka at the trade deadline, not only because of the need for reinforcements due to internal problems, I think it is precisely because they have their eyes on Dragic. As soon as Dragic came, Zhu Ge's replacement and the organizer of the connecting section were all there.
ESPN also said: "Dragic is close to making a decision, Milwaukee has been aggressive, they can not only give him a chance to defend the title, but also let him play an important role." ”
The Bucks should be followed by the Warriors, then the Bulls and the Nets on the same level, and finally the Los Angeles Duo. Of course, there is also the saying that Dragic may return to the Heat or go to the Lone Ranger, the Heat is similar to the Warriors, and the Lone Ranger only Has Doncic's single core to win the championship is very difficult.
Third, the status and comfort after arriving at the new team.
Dragic is a very well-rounded player, there is no dead end in the half-court attack, he can either block the ball and hold the ball, or play without the ball waiting for the end, or do a second transit and breakthrough, so he adapts to a variety of teams.
But when it comes to the status of the team, the most important thing is actually the ball, and the team that lacks a defender or a sixth-man role naturally gives more ball rights.
From this perspective, teams that fit Dragic are the Bucks, Warriors, Nets and Clippers.
As the Bucks said above, the Warriors and nets are special.
Although the Warriors have Pooler in the sixth-man position, Poole can also serve as an end point, and he and Dragic can start and end each other.
The special thing about the Nets is that Simmons can't block the launch in the position battle, and Irving can't play at home, so Dragic's arrival can alleviate Durant's organizational pressure at home, while returning Curry Jr. and Mills to the shooter position.
But when it comes to the away game, the connection section still has to give the ball to Irving.
Needless to say, the Clippers now carry the ball the most by Reggie, and Director Lou has to bring rookie Boston Jr. up from time to time for Leonard and George.
Regarding Dragic, Doncic said that he discussed with management before the start of the season and said something very interesting: "My father was Dragic's mentor. Dragic is a good friend of mine. Everyone wants good friends to come to their team, so we'll see. ”
Dragic: I take you as a nephew, you take me as a brother?
Dragic to the Lone Ranger, comfort is certainly not a problem, the problem is that the Lone Ranger's defenders gathered the table next to the mahjong and there are people who can bring tea and pour water, Dragic came to sit on the card table how long can not say, the defense is tidy?
Having said all this, the above-mentioned team chasing Dragic seems to be mixed with a strange role - the Los Angeles Lakers.
What are the Lakers going after Dragic?
You say they are strong contenders for the championship, and their probability of winning the championship in the above teams may be one of the smallest;
You say how much ball power and tactical status they can give, Young Master Wei and James have not yet figured it out;
You say dragic can stay in the Lakers how comfortable it is, the Lakers management understands;
You say they lack defenders, obviously they lack 3D forwards or a useful interior.
But the Lakers can't do anything, they will not move at the deadline for trading, they will not move in the buyout market, and they will not move at all this season.
Dragic is the best player on the free agency market at the moment, and no matter what, always try it, in case it succeeds. And even if it is no longer suitable, if the Lakers can hold him in their hands, other teams will not have it, and it will not be a long way to go.
But Hong Kong Zhen, the probability that the Lakers can catch dragic is too small, especially the thick eyebrows are now injured, and the Lakers look like there is no hope this season.
The injury of the thick eyebrow is easily the same as Irving's failure to fight, causing a chain reaction, James is likely to be in the fifth position, and the burden on him and Westbrook will increase.
If the Lakers' lineup is injured again, even if the thick eyebrows can come back immediately after four weeks, it will not make much sense.
In addition, the injury to the thick eyebrow may also trigger another event: James storming the scoring champion this season.
In the last period of thick eyebrow injury, James almost played 30+ points, and the least also had 25 points, because he did not score the team and no one scored.
At the same time, James has played for so many years, I believe he knows the current situation of the Lakers and has enough knowledge, this season's championship is basically out of play, but there must always be a motivation to support him to go.
There is no doubt that this motivation is Abdhabal's 38387 points, which is the first in history, and since he wants to chase this score, why not take a scoring king by the way?
So far this season, he has averaged 29.1 points per game, just 0.3 points away from the second letter and only 0.5 points away from the first emperor.
The injury to the thick eyebrows forced James and the Lakers to find some more realistic targets.
Thanks for reading it all!