10 Predictions for the Orlando Magic Season
If the Magic make a trade this season, Mario Hezonja most likely will be the outgoing player.
Last year, Orlando gambled on the 6-foot-8 Croatian with the fifth pick in the NBA Draft.
Recently, the team picked up his option for the 2018 year.
This year, the Magic may very well gamble against him again by trading him away. That is if a trade is to be made. There is a lot of pressure on the young player to produce and his struggles in the preseason do not provide a ton of confidence.
The only person who can prevent this trade is Mario Hezonja himself.
The Magic have pushed in the chips in to win now, while still developing young talent. The Magic will want to see that young talent make strides this year.
The issue is not that Hezonja is not talented enough. The issue is consistency. He will have to show some type of consistency if he wants to stay in Orlando.
Defensively, he gives up too much on second-chance hustle plays and offensively he finds himself standing around waiting on the ball to find him. He will have to find ways to stay active on both ends of the floor.
Billed as a shooter, Hezonja struggled to find any rhythm or accuracy under coach Scott Skiles. It is not clear what type of role he will carry this season.