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June 26, 2008 - 1:01PM
Updated: June 27, 2008 - 12:02AM
Suns notebook: Dragic may one day be starting point guard
Matt Paulson, Tribune
Unable to trade up in the first round, the Suns found an unlikely partner with whom to do just that in the second.
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After selecting Oregon swingman Malik Hairston at No. 48, Phoenix announced it had traded his rights along with a second-round pick in 2009 and cash to nemesis San Antonio for the rights to Slovenian point guard Goran Dragic, who the Spurs had picked for the Suns at No. 45.
“We feel he has a chance to be our starting point guard, frankly, in a few years,” general manager Steve Kerr said.
“He was a guy we targeted from the top of the second round. We were on the phone from the 31st pick to the 45th pick.”
Dragic is still under contract with his club team in Slovenia, but there is a buyout option after this coming season.
“There’s a good chance he won’t be able to come over and play this year, but there’s maybe a chance he could. We’ll see,” Kerr said.
The 22-year-old is a member of the Slovenian national team and has played professionally in his home country and in Spain since 2005.
The ’09 second-round pick the Suns traded originally belonged to Golden State and was acquired in 2005 in exchange for Zarko Cabarkapa.
HILL COMING BACK
As expected, forward Grant Hill exercised his one-year, $1.976 million player option.
Hill appeared in 70 games last season, starting 68, and averaged 13.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists while shooting 50.3 percent from the field.
His health was an issue during the last month of the season when he was in and out of the lineup due to an abdominal strain. The injury limited his effectiveness in the playoffs and forced him to sit out Phoenix’s final two postseason games.
Kerr said Hill has told him he’s confident he’ll be back to 100 percent by the time training camp rolls around.
“(The injury was) nothing that required surgery. It needed rest,” Kerr said. “He’s been working hard with rehab, and he feels great.”
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