Former Miami Heat players Goran Dragic and Precious Achiuwa were traded to the Toronto Raptors over the offseason in the deal that brought Kyle Lowry to Miami.
Dragic recently spoke about what he has seen from Achiuwa since being traded to the Raptors.
Dragic explained that the Heat put Achiuwa “a little bit into a box” last season and added that the youngster has shown that “he can do much more” than Miami asked him to do.
Dragic on Achiuwa: "If I'm honest, last year they put him a little bit into a box. Of course, it's a rookie and everything. He just ran hard, set screens, roll, catch the lobs, rebound. But this year we can already see in preseason that he can do much more."
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) October 19, 2021
Achiuwa averaged 12.1 minutes per game for the Heat last season. There is some truth to Dragic’s claim that Miami kept the training wheels on the former first-round pick. He averaged 5.0 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
The 22-year-old will hope to make a big impact with the Raptors. Toronto is hoping to challenge for a postseason spot after missing the playoffs last season.
As for Dragic, the veteran is looking to prove that he still has a lot left in the tank. He’s coming off of a 2020-21 season in which he averaged 13.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per contest.
Many Heat fans were sad to see both players go, but the addition of Lowry figures to do wonders for Miami’s title chances in the upcoming campaign.
