Just a regular Magic fan

With the draft only about 2 weeks away. Has anyone emerged (within reason) as your new draft hopefull? I know some wanted Alexander-Walker. Has that changed and someone new emerged as the favorite?

I wouldn't mind Clarke. I know it goes against the common trend in regards to court spacing, but at least he can consistently shoot the mid-range jumper, which is something I thought we needed last year when we couldn't buy a 3 pointer or a layup.

Thanks guys! LOL! Magicdoc1. Funny!

Question for the experts and casual fans like me: You are one of our coaches, what one thing (skill, shot, other?) would you have each of our core players (AG, JI, Bamba, Fultz, Fournier, Augustine, Vooch, Ross, and Iwundu) work on this summer to help them take the next step? Note: This doesn't have to be all-inclusive. If there is something you noticed about one player that they could work on that would be interesting too.

Curious. When we work guys out, do we get to choose who to work them out with? People are talking about his wingspan. Let's see if he can get a shot off against some of our best defenders.

I know the playoffs were an important step of our organization, but I hate picking where we are in this draft. I was hoping for a guy who could really help us turn the corner. I hope we get lucky and stumble upon a gem. :-)

Shhh… we don't want to be giving away any secrets. :-)

Found this nice little article on THT. lonzowire.usatoday.com

If he's there, I am intrigued by Sekou Doumbouya as a BPA player when we pick. What do you all think of him?

LOL! Glad to see we don't always agree. Me? On this issue, I am on the BPA side of things.

What would your strategy be in this draft? Draft for need (SG) or BPA?

I agree we need sure things, but what resources do we have and are willing to give up? For example, would anyone be willing to trade AG or JI for a player who is more developed today, but who also may not have as high a ceiling?

Now that the season is over and people are starting to do their homework on the new draft prospects are there any guys that have surprised you in a good way?

I think his outside shooting is much improved. With his length, I would love to see him develop a nice little repertoire of reliable shots around and in the post so that our team has a variety of ways to score when we are in our half-court offense.

LOL! I agree with you on Weltman. He's just playing the game. As for what you do at work, that is hilarious! It gives the impression you are a team player, but after it happens a couple of times they stop asking. LOL!

If I am the Magic, I would offer Ross a fair deal, but come in on the low side. My selling point to him and any other player is that we need to get our cap under control, so we can sign some decent free agents. Free agents cost money, and for a team like the Magic, they probably cost more money than other teams in a high profile market. If we are going to attract good players, we probably will have to overpay. Those here on the team, unfortunately have to pay the price and share the costs. On the surface that probably doesn't sound so good to a guy like TRoss. However, Orlando really loves their team and those players that show loyalty to them. If they like the smaller city life. Then Orlando makes a great home.

As a Magic fan since the beginning (Yes, I was fortunate to be able to go to game 1 :-) ), I will never get used to feeling like a groom being left at the alter when a player I have come to love gives us the boot.

If that is true, then I believe TRoss will be forcing us to move on from both of them, which will be disappointing. I really wanted TRoss back. I understand that these guys really like each other and want to be teammates, but we will never get out of our bad cap situation, and be a team that can sign a skill player or two in free agency, if we continue to agree to bad contracts.

I really like AG, JI, Iwundu, and Bamba and get the concept of drafting very good athletes who are long and play defense better than they play offense, but by the time one of our guys actually becomes a good shooter, I won't be around. I realize there probably isn't much we can do about it with our cap situation and where we are picking in the draft, but I am getting a little impatient. I believe good times are ahead of us, though. Now, we need a little **MAGIC** to help us along. :-)

Other than his poor performance in the playoffs does Vooch still fit what we are trying to do? If not, then we need to move on. If so, there is always a chance he will improve when we are there next year. For me, ideally, Bamba would end up adding some weight and developing and be our starting center anyway.

Yeah, I still can't believe how inconsistent the refs are. All I ask is they call things both ways, but it seemed to me when we were physical they called it, but when the Raptors were they swallowed their whistle. That said, we didn't play well enough to win the series. Disappointed, but I understand. They should be proud of their effort. Nothing wrong by getting beat by a better team. Now is the fun time. How can we improve individually and as a team, so that we can make the playoffs again next year.

I know, right? Sometimes, I was like is it 6 against 5? Not happy to see us outplayed, but those guys were bringing it! I don't re-watch the games, but I would be curious to see how they did it. The emotion in me wants to say they got away with something that the refs won't call on every play, but the real answer is they are probably well coached. They take good angles and understand where we were trying to go with the ball. I believe this series will really help our guys grow and we will see some of our guys take another step next year. I realize we are not a finished product and hopefully we can add someone decent somehow. I am still excited about our team and the direction we are headed.

Agree! This series has been a good measuring stick. No shame if we don't pull it out. Lots to learn and work on this summer and through our next season. We will be better in the playoffs next year, IMO.

Thanks for taking the time to explain. The disconnect is on my end. I never played organized basketball, so sometimes I have a hard time understanding what is going on. Sorry about that. :-)

So...we are looking for guys who can only shoot the 3 or cut to the basket, and play decent defense? Dang, I must be old school. I can see a team like ours having to resort to that style because we don't have a legitimate superstar who can create on their own. Next year, when hopefully Fultz is healthy, is he going to be the guy who drives and kicks it out?