The Orlando Magic hold two picks in the second round this year and an opportunity to add some talent. Here are a few players the Magic might target.
At this point in the NBA Draft process, everyone knows who the top guys are and who the guys are that might fall to the Orlando Magic at No. 6. Trae Young, Mohamed Bamba, Marvin Bagley III, Michael Porter Jr. and Wendell Carter Jr. leave plenty to whet the appetite for any fan. As does the potential for trades.
There is still a lot of work to be done beyond the big picture items. Beyond the potential of drafting a star player at the top. There is the little matter of adding another quality player to the team in the second round. The cheap, less-attached players that good development programs are built on.
Second-round picks do not hit as often as first-round picks. But they remain opportunities to find players with specific skills who can contribute in meaningful ways. They are opportunities, in some ways, to get the overlooked player or the player that has the chance to turn into something.
The G-Leaguer who has immense talent but may need some more time to grow. Or the veteran who does not have the upside teams like to commit a first-round contract toward, but can clearly play immediately because of his experience.
To ignore second-round picks is done at a team’s peril. Especially a rebuilding team.
The Magic will have two second-round picks in this year’s draft. They have their own pick at No. 35 and the 41st pick, acquired from the Phoenix Suns in the Elfrid Payton trade.
Both picks are close enough to the top of the second round they might very well still net first-round talent. A rebuilding team like the Magic cannot afford to let those opportunities slip away.
And that is what these second-round picks are: opportunities. The chance to get some added depth with solid players who may not turn into starters but can certainly serve a role.
While most of the attention here has been spent on the guys the Magic could take at the top of the draft — and some at the bottom like De’Anthony Melton, Elie Okobo, Donte DiVincenzo, Khyri Thomas, Anfernee Simons, Jarred Vanderbilt, Jerome Robinson, Josh Okogie and Bruce Brown Jr. — here are a few more names to keep an eye on in the second round.