Mario Hezonja can transform the Orlando Magic offense this season with his lights-out shooting.
The Orlando Magic had just three players who shot better than 36 percent from 3-point range last season (Tobias Harris, Channing Frye and Evan Fournier). But of those three, only Harris saw consistent playing time. Fournier fought injury and battled through losing playing time, and Channing Frye lost his starting position to Dewayne Dedmon.
The Magic do not have anyone capable of stroking at Frye’s percentage (39) while also providing enough other things on the court. Frye does not rebound well, is not a good defender, and just is not a starting power forward. There is no shooter who provides enough to warrant a starting spot.
Until now. Until Mario Hezonja.
The Magic ranked 29th in the NBA in 3-point percentage, largely because their best two shooters were not high volume, while Harris was but only right at the margin of efficiency.
The Magic also had just one player on the team who attempted at least four free throws a game (Victor Oladipo, 4.4).
Hezonja seems to have a chance to fix both these woes, creating the spacing Orlando’s offense so desperately needs.
Next: What will Hezonja bring that Orlando doesn't have?
What will Hezonja bring that Orlando doesn’t have?
Mario Hezonja only attempted about one free throw per game in Euroleague play, but he also played just 16 minutes per game in a true supporting role.
With just 56 field goal attempts, getting to the line for 24 free throws is not a bad ratio. The Magic will hope he attacks the rim and earns some free throws. His finishing ability is a strength, and NBA defenders will seek to challenge him. The opportunity is wide open for him to exploit big men attempting to make a play.
Hezonja’s skill set shows the mural of a player who could be a dominant wing man in the NBA for a good time to come. It almost seems like getting ahead of things, but the Magic will be a better team with Hezonja on the court. He is the shooter that was needed that Frye could not be.
This drafting addresses the wound that was improperly dressed last offseason.
Teams are going to have to respect his range, and defenses will collapse a lot less when Elfrid Payton penetrates and teams dare him to shoot (and Payton has been working a lot on his jumper, so hopefully this aspect is minimized).
Teams will still try to force Payton into miscues when he penetrates in traffic, but now he has an option on the wing, one that will benefit highly from that penetration.
Next: How will it result in better shots?
How will it result in better shots?
Victor Oladipo will find himself more free on the wing.
Nikola Vucevic will have a great person to kick it out to, demonstrating the passer he is which has often been lost in the numbers. Vucevic’s good passes often lead to blown looks, which is not his fault. He needs less defenders able to give the help-side defense and also for Oladipo to start knocking them down en masse along with Hezonja.
So, again, the Magic are relying on both Hezonja being the shooter he is and Oladipo making an incremental improvement, as well.
Although Hezonja will fix a lot, the Magic will have to rely on that type internal improvement to a large degree this season.
That is not necessarily a bad thing, though. Rebuilding requires the development of young talent, inherently so.
With Oladipo and Hezonja on the court at the same time, possibly with Aaron Gordon, the Magic would have three explosive finishers capable of getting out and destroying teams in transition. Speed and finishing ability are among two of Hezonja’s strong points, completing the deadly arsenal of his shooting talents.
As noted on ESPN’s coverage of the draft, he has the talent to win both dunk contests and three-point contests.
Next: What makes Hezonja Special?
What makes Hezonja special?
The Magic had Nick Anderson participate in both the 3-point contest and the dunk contest at different points in his career in the past, and those type of shooting athletes are almost always destined to have good careers.
Anderson became nearly a 20-point-per-game scorer in back-to-back seasons, and Hezonja could fill a similar role. Putting that type of production next to Oladipo on the wings would make the Magic a playoff team (at least in the Eastern Conference).
It would not happen immediately, but within two seasons with further improvement and signings, this team could find itself where it needs to be.
The Magic were at their best while playing that up-tempo style, as evidenced by the back-to-back wins over the Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets in January. Orlando can be a team that creates its offense on the backbone of a suffocating and pestering defense.
With today’s NBA so heavily reliant on transition threes, Hezonja’s skill set will lead to a lot of sustained success. Especially if the defense turns into offensive transition opportunities.
Payton and Oladipo are a tandem capable of producing a lot of traps and turnovers, and Hezonja’s athleticism should dictate that he fits right in. He is going to have the chance to learn from a very defensive minded staff and Scott Skiles, which will dictate that he develops his defense to a plus-level.
Next: Is he NBA ready?
Is he NBA ready?
If J.J. Redick can become an above-average defender, Hezonja can excel. It seems sometimes with elite 3-point shooters the focus becomes so heavily emphatic on their need to shoot, but Hezonja will demonstrate enough other skills to show the potential that has had him billed a “can’t-miss” prospect since he was 16.
Hezonja is ready to play in the toughest league in the world, and he is ready to further his career. European talents are forced to wait in the wings behind veterans quite often, and Hezonja could get his chance to start early with the Magic, particularly if Tobias Harris does indeed go elsewhere.
But the Magic now have that luxury, and it is not as though the money would not be spent eventually. What is not spent on Harris could be spent on another position of greater need, and that still remains the 4-spot.
With Kristaps Porzingis not having fallen to the No. 5 spot (if the Magic would have even preferred him), it still leaves the Magic with a huge question mark in place of a profile picture at power forward. We have even looked at some bargain options to fill this need.
But Hezonja fills at least one of the most crucial needs.
And not all birds can be knocked out with one stone, while the fact remains that Hezonja is still a better shooter than Porzingis likely. He is just not a stretch-4.
Hezonja will be able to defend 2s and 3s with his natural speed becoming his biggest asset. He is also reasonably long and can definitely get off the floor.
The only thing that would impede his chance at becoming a great defender is poor focus, lack of effort or utter apathy. His new coach, Scott Skiles, will not allow any of that.