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2018 Orlando Magic NBA Draft Review: Melvin Frazier learns to use his length

By Philip Rossman-Reich

ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 22: Draft Pick Melvin Frazier speaks at the Orlando Magic Draft Press conference on June 22, 2018 at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Gary Bassing/NBAE via Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 22: Draft Pick Melvin Frazier speaks at the Orlando Magic Draft Press conference on June 22, 2018 at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Gary Bassing/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The Good

The place to start with Melvin Frazier is with his measurements. It is a big reason why the Orlando Magic made him the 35th overall pick and why the team had him so high on their draft board.

Frazier’s measurables are eye-popping.

At the NBA Draft Combine, he measured in with a height of 6-foot-6 with a 7-foot-1.75 wingspan. That was the second longest wingspan among players listed as guards. His physical makeup quite simply has the look of a terror defensively. Someone teams will have a tough time getting around and someone who will be able to recover quickly defensively when he does make mistakes.

Frazier already has a solid makeup for a defensive player. And he has the ability to boot. For the majority of his three years in New Orleans with the Tulane Green Wave, that is what Frazier provided.

For as much value as you can put into defensive box plus-minus statistics, Frazier was solid there. He had a 2.7 defensive box plus-minus last year and college average of 2.0. He was certainly an above-average defensive player.

That is typically the hardest thing to find and teach in young players. Good defensive ability suggests that a player can come and play a role when they reach the league. That is something the Magic have targeted a lot in recent drafts.

There are plenty of other statistical indicators of Frazier’s potential defensively — his 1.2 defensive win shares, 2.2 steals per game and 0.7 blocks per game last year. But defense rarely gets measured statistically.

With how his offensive skills were slow to develop, Frazier has taken a lot of pride defensively. It is simply how he stayed on the court more than anything else. He had to fill this role.

Frazier will not be the primary scorer like he was at Tulane last year. That growth in his game and the expansion of his offensive game will certainly help him fill that role moving forward. He will be a secondary player, not a star like he was in his junior year. And that fits Frazier fine.

His biggest attribute and asset is his length and defensive ability.