Dragic came to Nash again, this time, Nash was the coach and Dragic was the player. In fact, in Dragic's mind, Nash has always been this position.
He has said more than once that Nash was a mentor in his career. Without Nash's help in previous seasons, he would not have been able to have where he is today. So no matter what Nash's identity is, in Dragic's mind, he has always been a mentor-like role.
It's normal for some people not to believe in Nash's coaching ability.
Holding the Nets' full level number, in the end did not make any results, naturally will not be accepted by fans and teams. But you can't deny Nash's ability to be in the player's time, especially the ability to drive the players around him.
Dragic is also a defender and he knows exactly how good Nash's abilities are.
As a European defender, Dragic didn't go so well when he first started in the league. He and Doncic are fellow countrymen, both from Slovenia. But the difference is that Doncic is the proud son of heaven with an aura, while Dragic's identity is slightly dimmed.
He had to re-adapt to the NBA's rules, even though he had been mixed up in Europe before. In 2008, Dragic was drafted by the Spurs and subsequently traded to the Suns. Dragic was very excited when he heard the news, because his idol at the time was Nash. Dragic even revealed directly in front of the media: "It's unbelievable that I can become a teammate with Nash."
At Phoenix, Dragic, who was in the same position and playing style, was placed on the bench and he was Nash's bench. We all know how important it is to have a good teacher early in your career, which means you'll take a lot fewer detours and advance technically faster than your peers. But because of the same position and the Suns' need for Nash to lead the team, this also led to Dragic's inability to have much playing time and ball power in the early days. More time he was on the bench, watching his teammates play on the field.
As a former European basketball genius, such a gap is still difficult to accept.
Fortunately, Dragic quickly adjusted his mentality. Having had professional experience, he knew that he should seize the rare opportunity. The Suns gave a very low degree of fault tolerance, and Dragic also used more careful and cautious performance to deliver an answer that satisfied the management.
In his first year, Dragic made only one starter, averaging only a pitiful 13.2 minutes per game. The following year, the playing time increased to 18 points, and he could get 7.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3 assists, the basic data is not very beautiful, but the actual performance is very efficient. Averaging 45.2 percent from the field and 39.2 percent from three-point range, fans at the time nicknamed Dragic "Nash Jr."
May 8, 2010, was a turning point in Dragic's career. In the playoffs Of the Western Conference semifinals, the Suns played against the Spurs. In the face of the old clubs who once chose themselves and traded, Dragic did not relent at all. In the final quarter of the game, Dragic scored 23 points alone and led the team forward. You must know that in this game, the maximum point difference behind the Suns is even more than 18 points. Dragic not only used his performance to smooth out the gap, but also sent the Spurs home on the road.
I thought that the sun would be the peak starting point of Dragic, but I didn't expect that the change would come sooner than everyone expected. In season 11, Phoenix's personnel changed dramatically. Singh left Phoenix, which also led to the team's performance began to decline. In order to adjust the personnel structure and optimize the tactical system, Dragic was traded to Houston as a chip in exchange for Brooks. What Dragic did not expect was that this transaction indirectly achieved the first small peak of his career.
During the Rockets period, Dragic's results began to go up, although most of the time he played as a substitute, but his status on the team began to improve greatly. In the 11-12 season, Dragic's average playing time increased to 26.5 points per game, averaging 11.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game, a qualified guard whose organizational significance is greater than the actual scoring significance, and in the next three seasons, Dragic returned to the Suns again, this time, he is already the core of the team.
In the Suns' three seasons, Dragic only played as a substitute, and in the peak of the 13-14 season, Dragic averaged 35.1 minutes per game, the three basic statistics were 20.3 + 3.2 + 5.9, the assist data compared to the previous year's 7.4 has dropped significantly, but the personal scoring data has improved greatly. It can be seen that the Suns management at the time hoped that Dragic could take on more offensive tasks and did not pay too much attention to his organizational requirements.
Dragic, who became a scorer, obviously achieved quality and quantity, and while ensuring the number of shots, his shooting efficiency has always been at the forefront of the league. Averaging 50.5 percent from the field and 40.8 percent from three-point range, both career-highs. If this momentum continues, Dragic is bound to become a first-line point guard in the league, at least in the top ten. But the sun's environment made Dragic hopeless, and before the All-Star Weekend of Season 14, Dragic chose to join Miami.
During this period, there were also more fans who paid attention to Dragic's ability. Many people have watched Dragic's performance and said that this is an ordinary European defender, there is nothing unusual. Everyone is right, Dragic does not actually have too prominent points. Especially if you just look at Dragic's own game, there is no outstanding explosiveness, can not create an addictive high-speed change of direction and show off their exquisite skills. These American defenders will have skills that Dragic actually rarely master.
And his ability lies in the fact that he can always accurately judge the position of his teammates on the field. He can cut through the opponent's defense with a scalpel-like pass like a surgeon, and he can also use his turret-like strike ability to deliver three-pointers when he is needed most. Dragic didn't learn Nash's creativity or his kind of wild racing performance, but he learned the most practical things. Precise cutting, as well as timely strikes.
This ability is actually reflected in the European Championships in 2017, when Dragic and Doncic took Slovenia and fought serbia. Doncic tandem the whole team, and Dragic can always strike at key moments, even if Serbia has many internal advantages, he can also achieve fire suppression. After a big circle outside, Dragic returned to Nash again. This may also be a kind of fate, but also the meaning of inheritance.