Orlando Magic Daily Mock Draft Version 1.0: A lot of options for the Orlando Magic

The Real Draft Candidates

As we get further down the Draft ladder, we start getting to the prospects the Orlando Magic are really focused on. The guys they are most likely to pick around No. 15 when they ultimately get up to select.

As you can see, there are some solid players in this Draft. Maybe not superstars but quality role players they should be able to make something of. Finding the right role player is going to be key. And the Magic might be willing to move up into this area to make sure they get the guy they want.

Florida State Seminoles guard Devin Vassell might be the No. 1 guy on most Orlando Magic fans’ draft boards. There is a good reason for that. In this Draft vacuum, Vassell has probably climbed higher up than anyone else. He is exactly what teams want in a swing guard.

Vassell scored 12.7 points per game and shot 41.5-percent from beyond the arc. He has great length at 6-foot-7 and is a good defender. You have to be to play at Florida State. That is why so many of Leonard Hamilton’s players have made it in the NBA. Florida State has a type and that type performs well.

Vassell can do more than just shoot and defend. But he is a prototypical 3-and-D guy. He understands what role he should play. It feels like Vassell might be the safest player in the Draft period. That is always a bit concerning as only time will tell if those skills that shined in college translate to the NBA.

Obi Toppin took the college world by storm in leading the Dayton Flyers into the top-10 and perhaps their best team in program history. Toppin is a super athletic power forward who works really well as a traditional power forward with the athleticism to defend on the perimeter. Toppin will have to expand his offensive game to really make an impact in the NBA.

After Devin Vassell, Orlando Magic fans likely have eyes on Aaron Nesmith. And there is a good reason for that. He averaged an eye-popping 23.0 points per game while making 52.2-percent from beyond the arc. All this on a 26.3 percent usage rate. It is rare to see that kind of efficiency on that kind of high-usage.

Nesmith got a lot of his points on cuts and working off screens. He can pull up for three and attack in the mid-range. This is the next coming of Richard Hamilton in so many ways. Nesmith is a dynamic scorer who should be able to fit in anywhere.

That is if he is healthy. Nesmith missed the last half of the season with a broken leg. While that injury is certainly one he can recover from, it is still concerning. Especially with how this Draft process is going to be disconnected. Nesmith is probably not the kind of scorer you can build a whole offense around. But that shooting should make him a solid pickup wherever he ends up.

R.J. Hampton entered the draft process as one of the can’t-miss prospects. He was one of the top high school players and was heading to Australia to turn pro early. He was a dynamic athlete who could get to the basket and finish at the rim.

The returns from his lone year overseas were not good. He struggled to fit in with older players and hold his own against the growing Australian League. An injury did not help. And everyone seemed to sour some on him. He was simply not able to display the full extent of his talent last year.

Hampton still has all that potential. And someone is going to bite on that. He could still improve as a shooter and a defender. He relies a ton on his athleticism to overpower players and that is what got him in trouble. Many scouts hope that last year humbled him some to prepare him to enter the NBA.

Jeff Weltman’s jaw must be on the floor when he thinks about Tyrese Maxey. He is a 6-foot-3 point guard with a 6-foot-8 wingspan. He oozes with the kind of defensive potential the Magic have sought after and he is certainly going to be one of the players the team considers when it is time to draft.

The physical tools are all there. But the question is whether he can truly take on the point guard role. Maxey averaged 14.0 points per game and 3.2 assists per game. He shot worse than 30-percent from beyond the arc. There would need to be a lot of skills teaching to make Maxey work.

The Magic have always felt like they could transform players like this. But drafting Maxey will likely mean taking a bit of a project. The good news is that Maxey showed some hope he could develop that way. He had a strong finish to the season, averaging 15.5 points per game and shooting 42.9-percent from the floor in his last 12 games.

The do-everything athletic prospect of this draft is Patrick Williams. With his talent, he would be a steal going this late. Williams averaged 9.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game for Florida State. He is one of the youngest players in this Draft and so he is all potential. The flashes at Florida State will be more than enough to get him drafted, even if all his skills are still extremely raw.