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.
Jalen Brunson, Villanova
The point guard for a national championship team rarely should be ignored. He, after all, led his team to a national championship. So he must be doing something right with his leadership and playmaking skills.
Jalen Brunson is not just a national champion, but a three-year starter and two-time national champion for the Villanova Wildcats. Last year he was solid all around, averaging 18.9 points per game and 4.6 assists per game while shooting a 60.4 percent effective field goal percentage. He was a 40-percent shooter from beyond the arc last year.
That all put together for his Big East Player of the Year and Associated Press Player of the Year campaign. Yes, even over his teammate Mikal Bridges.
Brunson feels like he is the overlooked veteran. The guy that ends up on the San Antonio Spurs or some other contending team and fits in perfectly.
Brunson is probably not going to be a standout player in the NBA, but just a solid one. He is the guy that keeps everyone around him calm and simply does his job. Nothing spectacular.
If a team needs him to run the pick and roll, he can do that. Spot up shooting? Defense? Check and check.
That is not always enough to get a player drafted in the first round. It is not always enough for what some teams need. But a team looking for some solid point guard play or a good long-term backup option or immediate contribution, they will turn to Brunson. He very well could be a culture setter in that way.
Brunson though has a ceiling. He measured with one of the shortest wingspans at the Combine at 6-foot-4. That will prevent him from being a complete defensive ace at the next level. And he projects as a spot starter and reserve player in the NBA.
But he clearly has all the skills a team could want in a solid addition. He will be someone who can lead a team immediately and impact whatever unit he is on.
Jevon Carter, West Virginia
Continuing the theme of veteran point guards, no one seems as solid as Jevon Carter might be. Especially on the defensive end.
Carter made his name mostly as the frontman of the West Virginia Mountaineers’ killer press defense. Even with his lack of size, he proved to be a nuisance to anyone he went up against. It was something beyond Bob Huggins’ unique press defense.
It helped too that Carter got better it seemed every year. He increased his scoring average every year to 17.3 points per game, 6.6 assists per game and 3.0 steals per game. Carter hit on just 42.2 percent of his shots.
Jevon Carter’s build is more like Jameer Nelson. He is big and can physically muscle around smaller guards. That is what made him such a great player and a great defender. He was just willing to work harder and outmuscle everyone around him.
That could help him establish a role as a culture setter. Much in the same mode as a player like Marcus Smart. But Carter has some clear deficiencies.
As good as he was defensively throughout his career, he did not measure well at the NBA Draft Combine. His 6-foot-4 wingspan with a 6-foot-1 height leaves him a bit on the small end.
That might be fine if he could add a consistent offensive threat to his game. But Carter has never been a great shooter. He topped out at 42.2 percent last year, although he made 39.9 percent of his 3-pointers. A 49.8 percent effective field goal percentage is not exactly screaming put the ball in his hands and let him work.
The good news is Carter is a good free throw shooter at better than 80 percent. So perhaps his shot can improve.
But it is also clear Carter’s best role might be off the bench as a disruptor. He can be someone who simply comes in and gives the team a bit of a defensive jolt. And that is a role he relishes and enjoys. A rare trait in a young player.
Rodions Kurucs, FC Barcelona
This is not a draft full of international stars. Luka Doncic is the guy at the top. Dzanan Musa and Elie Okobo make up some interesting prospects in the late first round. But this is not a class to go mining for international prospects.
One player has snuck back onto the radar and snuck back into the draft process that is worth considering. That is Barcelona’s Rodions Kurucs.
Kurucs was a borderline first-round pick last year who was slated to go anywhere from just outside the Lottery to the second round. He was an intriguing and interesting prospect that had a lot of skills.
Last year, Kurucs was a raw prospect who showed signs he could create his own shot and make it from deep. He just was not getting a ton of time on the court. At 6-foot-8, he has a smooth way of playing that suggests he can turn his athleticism into kinetic energy as he continues to develop.
Kurucs needed more time to grow and develop. Withdrawing from the draft and going back to Europe was an opportunity to get more seasoning before bumping up to the NBA. But it was also a risk that he would not get the playing time and attention the NBA might give.
So how did he do?
Last year for FC Barcelona, Kurucs averaged just 1.4 points per game, appearing in 10 games and averaging 5.9 minutes per game. Once again, Kurucs just did not receive a ton of playing time. It is hard to get a good sense of what he can be or who he is. He played most of his games for Barcelona’s second-division team.
It becomes even harder to judge Kurucs because he has not played for a Latvian National Team since the 2014 U16 European Championships.
In all likelihood, teams will want to keep Kurucs in the G-League if he came to the U.S. or let him continue to grow within the Barcelona system and move up the ladder in Europe.
Either way, Kurucs needs to play. He is a smooth and rangy player who can finish above the rim and shoot from the outside. There is a lot to like. He just needs more time on the court.
Melvin Frazier, Tulane
UCF Knights fans probably know just what kind of terror Melvin Frazier can be on the defensive end.
Frazier was the driving force for the Tulane Green Wave last year as his scoring and efficiency. He averaged 15.9 points per game and shot a 61.0 percent effective field goal percentage.
Offensively, he was good at driving to the basket and scoring around there. He was not a great 3-point shooter. And he had the ball in his hands a lot. That is not likely his role in the NBA.
His 3-point shooting has shown marked improvement over his three years. He shot 38.5 percent from beyond the arc after two seasons shooting worse than 30 percent from there. It certainly seems like Frazier has room to grow offensively.
But where Frazier will make his mark is on the defensive end. He is one of the better defensive players in the NCAA. A team that is picking Frazier is picking him for his potential on that end, especially if his offense continues to grow and he can develop a consistent 3-point shot.
Among guards at the NBA Draft Combine, the 6-foot-4.5 guard had the second-biggest wingspan at 7-foot-1.75, behind combo wing Ketia Bates-Diop. This is a guy with a lot of physical tools and a desire to play defense that will be hard for teams to pass up. Particularly if they come in the second round.
Frazier put up some good numbers in the NBA Draft Combine scrimmages too. He was someone who stands out on the court. He scored 14 points, four assists and four steals in his scrimmage game in Chicago. That is a good showing.
What will determine whether he makes it in the NBA is whether he develops that jump shot to complement his defensive abilities. But having that intangible defensively is a good place to start. And that will always attract attention.
Hamidou Diallo, Kentucky
Hamidou Diallo was the rare Kentucky Wildcats player who decided to head back to school. With all the talent they had incoming in their recruiting class that likely meant he was going to get pinched for playing time.
But he did not see the court his freshman year and his flirtation with the NBA was really a showcase of his athleticism.
His sophomore year saw him average 10.0 points per game and shoot 42.8 percent from the floor in 24.8 minutes per game. A lot of what is going with Diallo is still very raw.
Athleticism stands out though. And that creates potential.
No player may have measured athletically better at the NBA Draft Combine than Diallo. He had a 32.5-inch standing vertical leap and a 40.5-inch max vertical leap (with a running start). That rated among the top marks at the Combine.
At this point, anyone thinking of drafting Diallo is doing so solely on the potential of his athleticism. They all want to see what his athleticism can be and whether that can turn into skill.
He obviously still has a lot of work to go on the skill part of his game. His shooting needs a lot of work. His scoring comes more from the in-between game where he can use his athleticism to work around the basket and in the paint.
He is not going to come around a pin down looking to shoot. Instead, he prefers to curl into the lane and try to finish over defenders. That is not the most efficient way to operate. But he can find pockets to score there.
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Diallo likely needs a few more years of seasoning. Potentially even a stash year in the G-League. But athleticism is always hard to pass up or take a flyer on. Diallo has plenty of that.