MIAMI – A rather large Slovenian fan base will be at AmericanAirlines Arena on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. CDT when the Dallas Mavericks battle the Miami Heat.
Some 2,500 Slovenes — armed with #Dragic vs. #Dincic T-shirts — will watch the Mavs-Heat game and cheer on two of their country’s favorite players – the Mavs’ Luka Doncic and the Heat’s Goran Dragic.
“I’m sure Luka will play a very conservative game,” coach Rick Carlisle said after Thursday morning’s shootaround. “They’re two of the all-time great Slovenians.
“I know that Dragic has been somewhat of a mentor to Luka. I know there’s a great level of respect for Dragic from Luka, so I’m looking forward to seeing these guys compete against each other.”
Doncic and Dragic were teammates when Slovenia defeated Serbia, 93-85, for the gold medal at the European Basketball Championship in 2017. Dragic averaged 22.6 points and 5.1 assists and was named the Most Valuable Player of the championship game, and Doncic averaged 14.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists while being Dragic’s main sidekick.
In fact, Doncic and Dragic were roommates during the championship run.
“He and Draic are very close,” Carlisle said. “I would assume that they have a great relationship.
“They played together on the national team and had some pretty significant success. Those kinds of things always bring guys closer together.”
Doncic, 20, is averaging 21.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 5.9 assists and has seven triple-doubles this season for the Mavs. Dragic, who turns 33 in May, is averaging 13.9 points and 4.1 assists during an injury-riddled season this year for the Heat.
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