South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Getting reacquainted
Teammates reminded of what Dragic brings after his return from groin injury
MIAMI – All it took for Derrick Jones Jr. was one screen, one roll and one emphatic finish at the rim to appreciate what he missed and what he has regained.
“He makes the game a whole lot easier,” the Miami Heat’s dynamic dunker said of Friday night’s return by Goran Dragic after a ninegame absence with a groin strain.
Just for good measure, moments later, after that first alleyoop finish off a Dragic feed, the two washed, rinsed and repeated.
“He picks the defense apart,” Jones said. “If you set a great screen, he’s going to get downhill, regardless. He’s going to get to that sweet spot. It’s just all up to him after that.”
With the Heat 6-3 in his absence, it allowed the 33-year-old point guard to fully recover. But in Friday’s 129-114 victory over the New York Knicks at AmericanAirlines Arena, Dragic reminded teammates how much easier he can make the game.
“It’s just a whole new dynamic,” center Kelly Olynyk said. “He’s obviously an elite ballhandler, AllStar caliber player. He can do so much, shooting the ball, creating. He just picks up our pace in the second unit, gives us another ballhandler that we can throw to.
“For the last few weeks we’ve
had four rookies in that second unit. He just picks up our level of offensive execution to a new height, and it’s huge for us. And also, just for our bench, just providing that spark off the bench, where he’s able to come in and make something happen.”
In 24 minutes, 22 seconds Friday, there were 18 points, 8 assists and four 3-pointers. The 24 minutes were Dragic’s fewest in his past 14 appearances, his secondlowest total of the season.
“I put a lot of work in, but it’s tough to simulate the game,” he said of having been idle since a Dec. 1 road victory over the Brooklyn Nets, when he tweaked the groin in the first half but then played through to the finish. “My conditioning, I was surprised was good. But when you’re working out one-on-one or one-on-zero, it’s tough to simulate the game.”
At other times, there might have been a rush to return. Instead, he was able to wait until the time was right.
“You can see we have a deep bench. Everybody can play. It’s good,” he said. “It’s a long season. It’s not really surprising to me. It’s only trying to fit in with the system.
“I feel like I didn’t miss any games. When I stepped on the floor, I had great connection with D-Jones, Tyler [Herro], everybody. They make my job much easier.”
As does Dragic, on a team that otherwise had been rolling out Herro, Kendrick Nunn and other neophytes as second-unit playmakers in his absence.
“He just controls the game, the pace, and he’s never out of control,” forward Duncan Robinson said. “And, obviously, he’s super skilled and can really put the ball in the hoop. But he can get other guys involved and just make the right plays.
“For him to come back after missing some time and just fit in seamlessly, to be honest we’ve come [to] expect that from him because he’s such a savvy vet.”
With no one more appreciative than Jones.
“Me and Gogi, we’ve built a chemistry and a great relationship when he came to the second unit,” Jones said. ” I told him every day he was out, I couldn’t wait for him to get back. I’m glad.”
Making the game again as simple for Jones as screen, roll, finish.
“That’s what me and Gogi do,” Jones said of their alley-oop connection. “Once I get his man on that screen, I’m getting to the rim.”