Dragic seeking All-Star level off bench

HOUSTON – The question coming out of the AllStar break amid Goran Dragic’s impending return from December knee surgery was how the dynamic would work with Justise Winslow’s emergence as the Miami Heat’s starting point guard.

Two weeks later, one possibility is coming into focus, with Dragic playing as a spark off the bench.

“He is our All-Star,” coach Erik Spoelstra said in the wake of Dragic’s 27-point performance Wednesday night against the Golden State Warriors, as the Heat turned their focus to Thursday’s game against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center. “Last year we were the sixth seed and he was an All-Star. With that kind of talent, your team looks quite different.”

Just as the Heat looks different with Dragic in reserve, particularly with Dion Waiters having been inserted into the starting lineup.

“This year, from the very beginning, he was not right physically. He only played 14 games before this and did not look healthy,” Spoelstra said of Dragic’s uneven start to the season. “For him to be able to come back this year was a big victory for our franchise, regardless of whether he can get back to the AllStar level or not.

“He gives our team so much confidence. He makes big plays and does those breaking-down, offthe-dribble plays that you don’t necessarily need to run a set for, which we have been struggling with lately.”

While the sixth-man role has gone to Dwyane Wade this season, that role comes with an expiration date, with the 37-year-old guard to retire after this 16th NBA season.

That could make Dragic, who has one year left on his Heat deal unless he opts out in June, an heir apparent.

“We need guys to create something out of nothing, and Goran does that,” Spoelstra said.

With Dragic scoring his 27 against the Warriors and Wade 25, it was the first time the Heat had a pair of reserves score 25 or more since March 4, 2009, when Michael Beasley scored 28 points and Daequan Cook 27 against the Phoenix Suns.

Dragic’s 20-point second quarter not only was a single-period record for a Heat reserve, but was the highest-scoring quarter of his career. His 25 points in the first half tied his high for a first half, twice doing it with the Suns in February 2014.

The Warriors game was Dragic’s third in his return.

“The first game I felt rusty. The second game I played better,” he said of Saturday’s loss to the Detroit Pistons and Monday’s loss to the Suns. “[Wednesday] I felt really good, especially my legs in the warmups. I knew that I was going to have a better game than last game. Of course, I didn’t imagine I was going to play like that.”

Dragic’s 27 points in 20:14 of action, according to Elias Sports Bureau, is the most by a reserve in that length of action since Marvin Williams scored 27 points in 18:47 on Nov. 24, 2006.

CP’s chance: Injured during the teams’ previous meeting, Rockets point guard Chris Paul said Thursday’s game was appointment basketball, including because he already had arranged a jersey swap with Wade.

“It started on our group chat,” Paul told the Houston Chronicle of advanced planning with Wade, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and himself. “It turned into an extravaganza. It’s actually really cool.”

Paul said his bond with Wade is particularly meaningful.

“D-Wade, I mean he is a brother to me,” Paul said. “Everything, from the injury he had, we all went to Chicago and worked out with him, to my wedding, his wedding, birth of our kids. We say it all the time, but we’re not just NBA friends.” ...

Center Hassan Whiteside (hip) and forward James Johnson (shoulder) did not travel to Houston. Whiteside missed his second consecutive game, Johnson his fourth in a row.

Dragic