2018-19 Orlando Magic Player Evaluations: Melvin Frazier

Second-round pick Melvin Frazier never got the opportunity to take the floor for the Orlando Magic. The lack of playing time keeps him a mystery.

Late in the Orlando Magic’s win over the Milwaukee Bucks (without Giannis Antetokounmpo), Melvin Frazier got his chance with an open floor in front of him.

Melvin Frazier stole the ball and took the runway given to him. He unleashed a windmill dunk displaying all this athleticism and hops. Everything that the Magic foresaw in Frazier when they drafted him in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft.

That was a glimmer of Frazier. There were a few other moments in the few minutes he got where he showed off his natural defensive talent and athleticism. Frazier was intriguing, to say the least.

But this was not a year for Frazier to make much of an impact. The way the roster shook out — with no injuries and the playoff chase — Frazier never got a chance to play. He never played any minutes of significance the entire season.

It was not a lost rookie season. The Magic are not likely to give up on the pick quite yet.

But he will have to find a way to scratch for playing time. There is only so much time a second-year player will get. When Frazier gets his first opportunity, he will have to take advantage of it.

The odds for Frazier to get playing time was already a bit of a long shot. The Magic drafted him in part because of the potential of his length — 7-foot-1.75 wingspan at 6-foot-6, the second-widest wingspan among guards. He was something of a carbon copy of Wesley Iwundu.

Like Wesley Iwundu, Melvin Frazier was a guard who struggled to shoot through the early stages of his college career but made his name defensively. That got him on the court.

During each of their junior years, they took on more offensive responsibility and saw a big jump in both their shooting and scoring opportunities. That got them a look in the second round.

For both players, their shooting is ultimately what will determine whether they can make it in the league. The Magic’s penchant for drafting length got them to look at Frazier. But it certainly felt like they drafted Frazier in case Iwundu did not work out.

Iwundu absolutely worked out. He had a fantastic season becoming one of coach Steve Clifford’s most trusted bench players and a solid defender. That pinched Frazier’s playing time and pretty much cut him off from any path to the rotation outside of injury.

Frazier did not play enough to make any proper analysis of his play.

He played 44 minutes in 10 NBA games this season, scoring 15 total points and making just 7 of his 21 shots. The most minutes in any one game he played in the NBA was 5:31 in a 25-point loss to the LA Clippers early in the season.

A better measure of what he became probably came in the 5:21 he played in the 38-point blowout win against the Charlotte Hornets before the All-Star Break. He scored four points on 2-for-3 shooting, missing his only 3-point attempt.

It is really hard to take much out of those garbage time minutes. He was active and energetic defensively and found pockets to score. But it is hard to take too much away because he played so few minutes of consequence.

He played so few minutes in the G-League too.

Frazier appeared in just two games for the Lakeland Magic scoring 12 points and making 5 of his 16 shots (31.3 percent). He made two of his eight 3-point attempts.

Those appearances were not encouraging but it is hard to judge too much on such a small sample size.

And that was the problem with Frazier’s season. He did not get enough opportunity on the court to show what he could do. But he also did not seem to earn much opportunity to do so. Maybe he earned his way out of Lakeland and had a good presence in practice to stick around.

But there is always a new batch of players looking to take that spot. Frazier has one more year guaranteed on his deal. So his spot on the roster is seemingly safe. Whether he actually plays will be another question entirely.

Everything for Frazier, like with Iwundu, centers on his shooting.

He had the defensive instincts and length to get drafted. But his success depends on whether he can improve as a floor spacer. With the Tulane Green Wave, he shot 31.2 percent for his career, but 38.5 percent as a junior. That suggests he knows he can improve his shooting. That work in the offseason will be critical.

The Magic and fans will get a good look at whether he can make those steps during Summer League where Frazier will certainly be one of the featured players for the team. And someone Magic fans will have their eyes on.

There will be plenty of competition. The Magic could very well add another wing player in the draft or in free agency. Iwundu will still be there providing a lot of the same skills Frazier provides. It will be a fight for minutes.

It is extremely difficult to judge Frazier’s play this year. It is hard to say much about him other than that he did not get much playing time. That suggests he could not beat out the players in front of him. But that was always going to be hard to do.

The Magic were not in much of a position to hand Frazier playing time like several of their deep draft picks in years past. That is what winning does. It squeezes out the opportunity to play young guys like Frazier who need some time for seasoning.

In that sense, his year is doubly disappointing. Frazier probably should have spent more time in the G-League getting playing experience. NBA practices probably still had a ton of value for him and that does not mean he should not have spent long stretches with the Magic. But nothing substitutes playing.

Frazier simply did not play enough this season. And it is hard to draw a lot of meaning from that.

The few moments he played, there were some intriguing moments. Albeit all in garbage time without any significance.

This is a big summer for Frazier. He could become part of the short-term plans if he shows out at Summer League and makes the improvement to his shot that was always necessary. He does have some NBA experience.

But even next year will feel like a rookie year for him. He simply did not play enough to take away much from his first season.