2017 NBA Draft Thread

[TheNameIsOrlando 310]

I don't get why people are worried about spacing with Isaac. The kid is a pretty good shooter.

 

He's an ok shooter and people are worried because the rest of our team can't shoot and we have reservations about Isaac's ability to get a bucket when defenders are sagging off our whole team.

[Air Gordon 156]

He's an ok shooter and people are worried because the rest of our team can't shoot and we have reservations about Isaac's ability to get a bucket when defenders are sagging off our whole team.

I guess my rebuttal to that would be that free agency hasn't even started yet and the offseason literally just got underway. I'll be more judgmental of next year's team when I know who's gonna be on it.

[Justin Jaudon 221]

You need to let us not getting Smith go man. You're going crazy over a throw away pick.

 

Dude, seriously? 25 is absolutely not a "throw away pick." If you really believe that, I don't know if there's any help for you. I'll try, but good lord.

 

Let's look at some quality players drafted 25 over the last 20 years:

 

1998: Al Harrington - 981 games played, 445 games started

2000: Jake Tsakalidis - 315 GP, 168 GS

2001: Gerald Wallace - 832 GP, 611 GS, 1 All-Star

2003: Carlos Delfino - 507 GP, 170 GS

2004: Tony Allen - 798 GP, 441 GS, 5x NBA first or second team All-Defensive

2006: Shannon Brown - 408 GP, 60 GS

2008: Nicolas Batum - he's now a very good starter

2009: Rodrigue Beaubois - he was good before injuries killed his NBA career

2012: Tony Wroten - also really solid before the injuries

2014: Clint Capela - starting center for a contender

It's hard to judge the last couple, as they're in their first two years.

 

Other guys were lesser rotation players. VERY Few were all-out busts. So, just going by history, we had a 50% chance of landing at least really solid rotation player, with a very good chance of landing a good end of bench guy worth his rookie contract; about a 25% chance of landing a good starter. It's guaranteed money, yes. It's also nearly a guarantee that you have at least a decent bench guy on a good contract. Again, 25 is not a throw away pick.

 

And I don't think anyone here is that upset over Isaac, aside from maybe Pootie. I didn't want Isaac, but I expected it. I'm not happy that we passed on DSJ, like most of us here; but, also like most of us here, that's not my problem with this draft. I'm upset at us treating the rest of the picks like more of an annoyance than an opportunity. You pretending that this doesn't matter because you happen to really like the Isaac pick (which I totally believe has nothing at all to do with him being a Seminole...m'kay), makes you seem like you have no clue what you're talking about. I get that you are willing to overlook the rest of the ineptitude because we got your guy. But the rest of us have a valid reason to be frustrated that we punted the rest of the draft.

[LaVar 108]

The glass half empy feels on this board are insane right now. Maybe Smith Jr slid last night because the ACL isn't in the greatest shape or his attitude didn't check out. Why did the best or second best shooter in the draft slide all the way to #11? Monk was way too small, had questionable defense and no one believes he can play the point. People need to relax just a little bit. Maybe Vogel believes Elf is his PG and likes what 24 yr old Fornier can do. Isaac has a tremendous upside offensively and at worst should be a very solid 3 and D guy. Maybe we got the next Durant, Giannis or insert long and fluid scorer name here.

 

It also doesn't make sense to spend a late first rounder just because you have it. No need to take on any additional contract if you don't believe in the player.

 

 

I don't mind the trades. I do not like the return we got back. Top 20 protected and 2 year wait. We should have learned from the Lakers pick. We may not receive a first round pick at all. This is all we got for surge. Good thing I like ross.

 

The new front office people are acting like we have too much talent and not enough room to take shots and development players. When the truth is all the bum veterans can be fired because they have not helped and we need to farm talent now. We need to being in talent and see who we should keep.

 

It would have rather stashed a foreign player.

[Catalina Maria 64]

If Vuc is traded and the Magic get a good PG, things can turn out alright depending on the development of the current players on the roster. I think a lot also hinges on Vogel's evolution as a coach. He proved to be pretty stubborn last year, but maybe he's changed now that he'll have a whole offseason with the roster. I hope he took some time to look over new strategies and game plans.

 

The thing I'm most worried about right now is spacing. AG and Isaac together can make things difficult. Throw Payton into the mix and the lane will become very crowded very quickly. At least two of those three need a respectable jumper for it to work (especially if Biyombo is in at the 5 [shudder]).

 

Not with this lineup:

 

Isaac

Gordon

Hezonja

Ross

Payton

 

Biyombo

Rudez

Fournier

Meeks

Augustin

[tkranole 19]

I don't mind the trades. I do not like the return we got back. Top 20 protected and 2 year wait. We should have learned from the Lakers pick. We may not receive a first round pick at all. This is all we got for surge. Good thing I like ross.

 

The new front office people are acting like we have too much talent and not enough room to take shots and development players. When the truth is all the bum veterans can be fired because they have not helped and we need to farm talent now. We need to being in talent and see who we should keep.

 

It would have rather stashed a foreign player.

 

i don't think we got great return either and agree that a couple draft and stash guys would have been nice. People also need to consider that we can use these acquired picks in trades to get rid of Evan, Vuc, DJ, etc.

 

New FO will use the next year to evaluate what we have. It's go time for Gordon and EP this season or their time here is up. Mario as well since he hasn't shown us but a few flashes.

 

I think Vogel will be able to do a much better job wth the younger guys this year since he knows winning isn't a priority like it was to start the year last year. Hard to give Mario any burn when you can't trust him to not lose you a game.

[Soul Bro 1,419]

I totally understand the frustration of the board over the last few days. I personally wanted to draft at least one PG, but I understand why we didn't and why we traded two of the picks. Looking forward, I still have my doubts about EP and think we should look for a new floor leader. I'd like Hill or Beverly. Neither is an all-star but both bring leadership, defense and spacing. Secondly, I'm ready to trade Vooch and his Swiss cheese defense. It's time for a new chapter in Magic basketball.

[Optimist Prime 197]

I don't get why people are worried about spacing with Isaac. The kid is a pretty good shooter.

 

He was an alright shooter in college. He'll probably struggle when quicker, longer, more athletic wings are closing out on him. And we don't know if he has NBA range either. He needs time to get a good shot off, which means defenses will have that time to recover.

 

He has good form though, so I think he can improve. The question is just how long that will take when done alongside bulking up to be able to withstand the pounding he'll get at the next level. Adding muscle will effect his shooting.

[Magicman28 295]

He was an alright shooter in college. He'll probably struggle when quicker, longer, more athletic wings are closing out on him. And we don't know if he has NBA range either. He needs time to get a good shot off, which means defenses will have that time to recover.

 

He has good form though, so I think he can improve. The question is just how long that will take when done alongside bulking up to be able to withstand the pounding he'll get at the next level. Adding muscle will effect his shooting.

 

 

Longer? Dude is gonna be 7'1.

 

 

Your last sentence isn't always true. It depends.

[Optimist Prime 197]

I totally understand the frustration of the board over the last few days. I personally wanted to draft at least one PG, but I understand why we didn't and why we traded two of the picks. Looking forward, I still have my doubts about EP and think we should look for a new floor leader. I'd like Hill or Beverly. Neither is an all-star but both bring leadership, defense and spacing. Secondly, I'm ready to trade Vooch and his Swiss cheese defense. It's time for a new chapter in Magic basketball.

 

I don't know if I'd want Hill or Beverly unless we know we are getting playmaking off the ball. What would the starting lineup be if we got them? I guess if Fournier can do some ball handling, that might work. And we can see what happens with Hezonja's development as a ball handler.

 

It also depends on what returns we can get from trades, and who goes in those trades. I want Vuc out. Fournier, I'm actually okay with as long as he plays within himself. The team can be okay depending on development and adding the right pieces.

 

I'm not confident that Payton will develop a jumper, since I don't think he actually has it as much of a priority. Which is why I think keeping Fournier could be good. He and Ross could space the floor. I think AG can develop a better jumper, so that would create space. I'm interested to see what comes of Iwundu, since he could play as a big guard. The wings are pretty crowded though.

 

Biyombo/??

Gordon/Isaac

Fournier/Hezonja/Isaac

Ross/Meeks/Hezonja/Iwundu

Payton or FA/Augustin, FA, or Payton/Meeks?/Iwundu

 

So sub out or add a couple guys? If Fournier does get traded, I'd wait til mid season so we can be sure of Hezonja's development. He'd also probably have more value at the trade deadline. That'd clean things up a bit, and we will know what direction the team is headed in to determine what kind of return to look for in a trade.

[Optimist Prime 197]

Longer? Dude is gonna be 7'1.

 

 

Your last sentence isn't always true. It depends.

 

But he isn't 7'1 yet. And yeah, guys will have longer wingspans in the NBA than those he faced in college. If he shot 34 percent from the college three against slower, smaller competition, one would think he might not do as well from the NBA three against faster, taller competition. That's all I'm saying. He's going to take time to develop. I think he will end up fine, but he needs to add muscle and work on his shooting. Doing those things together might take a little longer.

[Magicman28 295]

But he isn't 7'1 yet. And yeah, guys will have longer wingspans in the NBA than those he faced in college. If he shot 34 percent from the college three against slower, smaller competition, one would think he might not do as well from the NBA three against faster, taller competition. That's all I'm saying. He's going to take time to develop. I think he will end up fine, but he needs to add muscle and work on his shooting. Doing those things together might take a little longer.

 

He's 6'10 with a long wingspan. He'll be fine. Probably grows this summer and will be damn near 7'0 when the season starts.

 

The key to not letting muscle mass affect ones shooting is to not ignore the reps. Plenty of guys hit the weights and shot isn't affected because they shoot a ton of shots while lifting .