Miami Heat: It’s finally guard Goran Dragic’s time to shine

Miami Heat guard Goran Dragic was named the league’s Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time this season.

Goran Dragic may be the most underrated player in the league.

A master of his craft, the Miami Heat point guard is rarely if ever regarded as elite. Despite showing consistency year after year, steadily bringing his team success.

But this season, it seems people are finally starting to give the 31-year-old the attention he deserves. Having been named Eastern Conference Player of the Week on November 27, Dragic once again received the honor on January 15. He became the first Heat player to be named Player of the Week multiple times in a year since LeBron James, and just the fourth in the East to do so this season.

The veteran led Miami to a 3-0 week, defeating the Toronto Raptors, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks. This brought them up to a seven-game winning streak, finally defeated by the Chicago Bulls on Monday afternoon. Now sitting at 25-18, the Heat are fourth in the East, within a game and a half of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Dragic averaged 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.0 steal over those three games, while shooting 50.0 percent from the field and 46.2 percent from downtown. His best offensive performance came on Sunday against the Bucks, scoring 25 points on 9-for-17 shooting (going 4-for-6 from 3). However, he finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds in Toronto, tying his career-high in boards.

Now, some may argue that earning Player of the Week doesn’t mean much. That it doesn’t necessarily speak to how much talent a player has. And it doesn’t really guarantee success moving forward. But it’s not about that when it comes to Dragic. It’s about recognizing a guy who has been playing high-level basketball for years now.

Even more so since coming to Miami.

Averaging 17.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists since arriving in South Florida, the Slovenia-native has been a constant source of reliability, amidst many up’s and down’s. He was the organization’s silver-lining to a year marked by Chris Bosh’s first blood clot diagnosis. Kept hope alive when Dwyane Wade left for Chicago. Led the team to turn an 11-30 record into a 30-11 run.

And now, he’s a co-captain teaching a young team to never give up. And to take accountability, when things don’t go their way.

Next: Miami Heat comeback bid falls short to Chicago Bulls

It took long enough, but it seems people are starting to notice this Miami Heat guard. The next step? Sending Goran Dragic to the All-Star Game.