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2018 Orlando Magic NBA Draft Preview: Josh Okogie, from scorer to role player

By Philip Rossman-Reich

ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 28: Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket freshman guard Josh Okogie (5) breaks away to score the game winning buzzer beater during the game between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Yellow Jackets defeated the 14th ranked Fighting Irish 62-60 on January 28, 2017, at the Hank McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 28: Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket freshman guard Josh Okogie (5) breaks away to score the game winning buzzer beater during the game between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Yellow Jackets defeated the 14th ranked Fighting Irish 62-60 on January 28, 2017, at the Hank McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Josh Okogie, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
ATLANTA, GA – JANUARY 28: Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket freshman guard Josh Okogie (5) breaks away to score the game winning buzzer beater during the game between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Yellow Jackets defeated the 14th ranked Fighting Irish 62-60 on January 28, 2017, at the Hank McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Josh Okogie was a gifted scorer and an incredibly gifted athlete. The question for this guard is what he will do and how he fits in with the NBA.

At the end of the day, basketball is about scoring. There are a whole lot of other things teams look at — physical attributes, speed and all the others — but it comes down to being able to put the ball in the basket. In whatever role it comes with.

Players typically have to find a way to make their games work within the concept of a team. And their ability to do that will likely determine their place in the NBA. Finding other skills to keep a player on the court are a good thing but scoring is ultimately what the point of the game is. Everyone needs to support something in that line.

Josh Okogie did it all for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets last year. His two years in Atlanta, he averaged 16.9 points per game. He scored 18.2 points per game last year with a 47.5 percent effective field goal percentage. He made a cool 38 percent from beyond the arc fairly consistently.

On top of all this, he is a good defender with good length for a 6-foot-4 guard. Okogie has a lot wrapped up into him.

But there is always that question. How does he play when the ball is not in his hands? How does he help a team score more? Okogie will not carry over that 27.3 percent usage rate to the NBA. His scoring is not nearly efficient enough, nor his size good enough to do so.

Or maybe it is.

Teams view Josh Okogie in the same category as Khyri Thomas. Something of a tweener positionally who showed some good offensive flair but not enough to be among the top stars. And they both seem to have great defensive potential.

Okogie is more of a driver and slasher than Thomas. And perhaps a better defender, but not nearly as good of a shooter. They should get drafted in the same area in the upcoming NBA Draft.

But that raises that big question for any player transitioning from a college star to a NBA role player. How do you contribute to a team? How do you make that team better?

Okogie has plenty of physical promise and potential. But also a lot of questions about how to channel that talent successfully.