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Orlando Magic Daily Mailbag Volume 7: Individual Workouts

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Mar 27, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris (12) drives to the basket as Detroit Pistons guard Reggie Jackson (1) defends during the second half at Amway Center. Detroit Pistons defeated the Orlando Magic 111-97. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 27, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris (12) drives to the basket as Detroit Pistons guard Reggie Jackson (1) defends during the second half at Amway Center. Detroit Pistons defeated the Orlando Magic 111-97. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Ooh, this is an intriguing question.

I am going to take this as: If Nikola Vucevic were a rookie entering this year’s class with his current skill where would I take him? With all Draft rules and viewing of potential included and all.

Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor are above Vucevic, for instance. Kristaps Porzingis might be too. It is about that range that I think Vucevic fits in. So we are definitely talking about, at least, a top-10 pick for Vucevic straight up.

Using my first Mock Draft as a basis . . . I have got to say sixth or seventh. I like Justise Winslow a lot. Really the guy you got to think about with Vucevic is Willie Cauley-Stein. Do you value a skilled offensive big man or a player who is probably going to be limited to being Tyson Chandler at best?

I like Cauley-Stein a lot. If the Magic opted to acquire a wing player or a stretch-4 for Vucevic and draft Cauley-Stein to play center, I think I could get on board with that. I suspect Cauley-Stein will have a solid career and will contribute pretty quickly in the NBA.

So I would say six or seven as a pick I would take for Vucevic straight up.

But, I think this is the question you really want to ask:

This question is probably somewhat born from the Bill Simmons podcast which proposed the Magic trade Vucevic and their pick for DeMarcus Cousins, essentially. We explored that idea in a post as well.

Vucevic might be a player teams go after if they need a center — the Bucks are reportedly interested in Brook Lopez in free agency this summer — but really Vucevic is a quality young player the Magic can use as bait to get a bigger-name player along with other assets.

Vucevic is the kind of player you take to hold the ship together as you begin a rebuild when you make a move that takes you a step back. You hope Vucevic is the kind of asset in the trade market that can bring in a guy that takes you to the next level.

Who is that right now?

That probably will not be determined until we get a little closer to the Draft. It looks like Ty Lawson and DeMarcus Cousins seem poised for a move, but who knows? The Draft might reveal some more plans and certainly the Draft will bring a lot more people to the table for discussion.

Next: Who should be the next coach?