December 24th 2020 at 9:06pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum
The next phase in the development of Heat All-Star center Bam Adebayo could be improving his shot creation, and veteran point guard Goran Dragic should still have a huge role for the club even as he returns to the super-sub role he had ahead of the Heat’s Finals run this summer and fall, per Seth Partnow and Dave DuFour of the Athletic.
Partnow and DuFour also wonder whether the 34-year-old Dragic’s incredible run during the 2020 Orlando restart, including a scorching playoff tear, was a blip on the radar or can be replicated this season.
There’s more out of the Southeast Division:
- Tyler Herro has supplanted Dragic as the Heat’s starting point guard in his second season, as Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald details. Dragic started at the point for most of the 2020 NBA playoffs.
- Newly-extended Magic players Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac are excited for their opportunity to contribute to Orlando’s growth as a club, per Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel. “Not everybody gets extended, and to be a part of this group… and to be with this organization, it means everything to me,” Isaac said. “I love the coaching staff. I love the team. I love that they have belief in me, and they have it because I have belief in myself.” Isaac is expected to miss the entire 2020/21 season with a torn left ACL.
- The Hornets will be forced to scramble a bit after losing starting center Cody Zeller for four-to-six weeks with a fractured left hand, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. While Bismack Biyombo will probably get the nod as Zeller’s replacement at the five, Bonnell expects head coach James Borrego to lean more on small-ball lineups that would feature 6’7″ forward P.J. Washington at center and Miles Bridges at power forward.
