Former NBA All-Star Goran Dragic is calling it a career after 15 seasons in the NBA. To celebrate, Dragic is hosting a farewell event in his hometown of Ljubljana, Slovenia on August 24th with many current and former NBA players participating.
The list of players includes three Dallas Mavericks legends: Luka Doncic, Steve Nash, and Dirk Nowitzki. Doncic played with Dragic on the Slovenian national team for their first-ever Eurobasket title in 2017. While Nowitzki has no on-court connections, the German’s influence on European basketball will never be forgotten. Since Nowitzki retired following the 2018-19 season, this might be the first chance we get to see him “play” on a basketball court since then, as he’s cited bad ankle issues. Dragic was Nash’s understudy on the Phoenix Suns from 2008 to 2011 before Dragic was traded to Houston.
“The Night Of The Dragon,” as it’s being called, sold out in 20 minutes and will feature a team draft the night before at a gala. Some of the other current and former scheduled to appear are Nikola Jokic, Vladimir Radmanovic, Nikola Vucevic, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Luis Scola, and Robin Lopez. Dallas native Chris Bosh is scheduled to be there but won’t play for medical reasons.
Dragic won the Most Improved Player award for Phoenix in 2013 and was an All-Star for the Miami Heat in 2018. He spent most of his career with the Suns and Heat, but bounced around the league at the end of his career, playing for the Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors, and Milwaukee Bucks.