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Suns sign Goran Dragic to back up Nash

Posted: August 13, 2008
Sean Deveney
Sporting News

After much wrangling, more than a few doubts and some international diplomacy, the Suns finally have landed the player they expect to be Steve Nash's backup this year. A source confirmed to Sporting News that Slovenian point guard Goran Dragic -- whose rights were acquired in June in a draft-night trade with the Spurs -- will sign a multi-year contract of at least three years and will play in Phoenix next year.
There are still some administrative details to resolve, but this is a big win for the Suns. Dragic did not have a buyout in his contract with Tau Ceramica in Spain, and it was widely believed that he would have to wait till next year to join an NBA team. Before any deal with the Suns could be finalized, Dragic had to haggle with two European teams, negotiating a buyout that would persuade them to release him from his contract.
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Rather than paying Dragic a standard rookie minimum, the Suns had to pay him part of their mid-level exception to help cover the cost of the buyout he negotiated with Tau.
Phoenix was willing to pay that, though, because the Suns have long been intrigued by Dragic's potential, who is 6-4 and 22 years old. In fact, on draft night, Phoenix considered t
aking Dragic with the 15th pick.
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The Suns feel he is intelligent and mature enough to step in and be Nash's backup this year. Without Dragic, Phoenix would have been down to some less-appealing options to back up Nash. The team was rumored to be interested in guard Jannero Pargo -- more of a scorer than a point guard -- or, failing that, probably would have had Leandro Barbosa revert from his role as off-the-bench scoring guard back to his old role as Nash's backup.

MaryvalesFinest wrote:Finally...Hopefully he's as good as Suns management claims.

Jerry Brown, Tribune

The Suns moved a step closer to bringing second-round pick Goran Dragic to Phoenix this year when a Slovenian court settled a dispute between two European teams over how much of Dragic’s potential buyout agreement they would receive.

But the Suns also flatly denied a report by SportingNews.com that they have signed the 22-year-old point guard to a contract of at least three years and that a buyout agreement between Dragic and his Spanish team, Tau Cerimaca, has been reached. Such a deal must occur before Dragic can leave for the NBA.

Suns vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said the team continues to monitor the situation closely and the team remains hopeful that Dragic will be in a Suns uniform this season.