The Big Question: How can the young core improve for the Orlando Magic?

Nikola Vucevic’s defense

Nikola Vucevic is an offensive force at center. Averages of 19.3 points and 10 rebounds per game last season speak volumes to his improved offensive play.

Despite these numbers, there are still significant holes in Vucevic’s game that need to be filled.

His offensive post repertoire has seen improvement during his career, but it has not led to a substantial increase in free-throw attempts, as his attempts per game sat at 2.9 last season.

Easy points at the line would help Orlando’s offense improve leaps and bounds and, if Vucevic is going to hang his hat on his offensive ability, he will be expected to provide that.

The more obvious hole in Vucevic’s game is his defense, specifically his rim protection.

Orlando blocked an average of just 3.4 shots per game while Vucevic was on the court. That number rises to 4.5 with him on the bench.

Furthermore, Vucevic’s offense allowed Orlando to score 96.9 points per game with him on the floor as compared to 92.6 with him off. Yet the team’s plus/minus held steady at -5.7 points per game regardless of Vucevic’s presence.

The reason: defense.

Dewayne Dedmon is a far superior defender and shot blocker to Vucevic and that is fine. But Vucevic still has plenty of room to improve defensively if he is to be the franchise center his stats suggests he can be. The good news: even if Vucevic has reached his ceiling, he will still have an important role to play in Orlando.

Next: A bright future with progress