2016 Outlook
It is still hard to get a sense of what Nicholson’s future will be. So much goes into it.
The Magic’s new coach will have a big say in whether Nicholson has any future with this team or if he gets plopped back on the bench.
His skills are pretty well defined. All Nicholson can do is continue to make his jumper more consistent and improve his defense and strength to defend in the post.
Nicholson showed a lot of general improvement in the time he had on the floor. Unfortunately, that was very limited. So it is hard to say exactly where he fits in for the long term.
Nicholson has his skills pretty well established. He has to continue building consistency and proving himself, particularly on the defensive end. But really his future is going to be completely reliant on the new coach and whether the new coach see much use for him.
Nicholson is in a bad spot right now. He has very little value on the trade market and is still a year away from entering free agency. What he has to do now is continue to improve and hope he makes a good first impression. Otherwise, it will be easy to forget him and cast him aside.
It is a lot of pressure for Nicholson. But in a contract year with his career likely on the line, Nicholson has to make his presence known early and prove his worth quickly or else be made irrelevant.
Next: Final Grade