All eyes are on Jonathan Isaac as the Orlando Magic completed a fairly active NBA Draft by selecting the biggest potential in the NBA Draft.
Orlando Magic fans had a lot of reason to anticipate and get excited about the 2017 NBA Draft.
Even though the team entered the Draft with the sixth overall pick, there was a very high likelihood the team would get one of the big stars of this loaded top end of the draft class. For a team coming off a disappointing 29-win season too, having three picks from 25 to 35 also presented an opportunity to reinject the roster with young players and reset the team a bit.
The Draft is a time to believe in the future. It is easy to believe everything the team wants to accomplish can get done in the Draft. Orlando still needs to explore other ways to improve its roster. But the foundation for the whole summer would get laid Thursday night.
Or so everyone thought.
With four picks in the top 35, Magic fans expected the team to try to move up to get a more talented player. Nobody thought bringing in four rookies would be the right idea. Coming out with a high-risk prospect in Jonathan Isaac and Wesley Iwundu in the second round was met with some disappointment.
Orlando ended up using the sixth overall pick on the long, athletic Isaac. He is a raw prospect who could grow into a star player, but he may take some time to get there.
The team then traded the 25th overall pick to the Philadelphia 76ers for a future pick from the Oklahoma City Thunder (the protections are super complicated and require its own post . . . so stay tuned). The Magic passed on several backup point guard options, center options, a few stretch-4s and some intriguing wings.
The Magic selected Wesley Iwundu, the long, defensive-minded senior from the Kansas State Wildcats, with the 33rd pick. And then they traded the 35th pick to the Memphis Grizzlies for the Brooklyn Nets’ 2019 second round pick.
Orlando largely traded out of this draft, admittedly unimpressed or uninspired with the prospects available to them. President of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said the team aimed to preserve its assets by spinning them forward.
That may not be what Magic fans want to hear.
Expectations do set reaction to the Draft. And it is increasingly difficult to grade the draft the day after. Nobody knows which players will turn into stars and which ones will turn into busts. But everyone loves to undertake the exercise.
Let’s tour the various sites and see what everyone is saying about the Magic’s draft haul.