Orlando Magic Daily 2021 NBA Draft Big Board 3.5: Thinking about needs with talent

Orlando Magic Daily Big Bard: Deep draft considerations

Filling out the first round

Sharife Cooper has been generating buzz in the pre-draft process for his athleticism and speed numbers. He was a solid point guard at Auburn, averaging 20.2 points per game and 8.1 assists per game on a 42.7-percent effective field goal percentage while carrying a 33.1-percent usage rate.

Kai Jones is a raw center prospect who has shown an ability to hit from the outside. At this point, everything about him is uncertain and whoever drafts him is going to have to be patient as he continues to learn the game and to define his skills.

Usman Garuba is an intriguing international prospect as a traditional power forward. He is a solid rebounder and defender. At 6-foot-8, he is undersized to play center. Despite a willingness to shoot, there is still work for him to do beyond playing around the basket in the paint.

The big attraction of Chris Duarte is his 40-plus-percent shooting from beyond the arc. The senior guard is a solid scorer, but shooting will be his calling card when he hits the NBA.

Tre Mann showed tremendous growth in his time at Florida, becoming a better shooter in each of his years as his role expanded. He finished last year scoring 16.0 points per game and shooting better than 40-percent from deep.

JT Thor is a 6-foot-10 forward who averaged 9.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. He is a good athlete and showed a lot of signs of the kinds of things NBA teams like to see. But he was a really poor shooter, making less than than 50-percent from the field, and he is not much of a jump shooter. Plus he averaged 1.5 turnovers per game. He is a major project.

Jared Butler completed a solid junior year where he averaged 16.7 points per game and 4.8 assists per game while hitting on 41.6-percent of his 3-pointers. Butler though plateaued off his sophomore year. And he is not a natural point guard, despite splitting point guard duties with Davion Mitchell.

Cameron Thomas was a strong scorer at LSU, averaging 23.0 points per game as the Tigers surprised many with a strong run in the SEC Tournament. Thomas was not overly efficient but he had to carry LSU.

Ziaire Williams has a lot of strong scoring attributes. He can attack the paint and finish around the basket. But his poor shooting will lead to questions about how he fits in when he is not the center of the offense. And thus a big red flag on him as he gets looked at just outside the Lottery.

Trey Murphy had a strong two-year run at Rice before confirming his talent at Virginia last year. He averaged 11.3 points per game and shot 43.3-percent from beyond the arc. Those numbers were slightly down from his big sophomore year at Rice. But still solid. And coming from Virginia, teams should be able to trust he can defend and has sound fundamentals.

Keon Johnson’s backcourt running mate, Jaden Springer, put up similar numbers with 12.5 points per game but a more refined outside shot. Springer is nowhere near the athlete that Johnson is (who is?) but his shooting ability will help him find a place in the league. Although our pals at FanSided probably think a little too highly of him.

Isaiah Jackson is the Kentucky representative for the Draft in a down year. He is a good athlete but does not have much of a game outside the paint yet.

The real reason Anfernee Hardaway was in Chicago for the NBA Draft Combine was to work out and help Frank Grimes. He put on a great showing as the best player who played in the five-on-five games during the event. Grimes is a solid player with the ability to put the ball on the floor and hit from the outside. After four years in college, his upside is low, but he could be this draft’s Courtney Lee as a contributor on a winning team.

Joshua Primo served as Alabama’s sixth man for much of the season, averaging 8.8 points per game and shooting 38.1-percent from the field. In 19 games as a starter, Primo posted 9.0 points per game and made 40.8-percent of his 3-pointers. Primo is still a young player seeking consistency as he earned the start job and then lost it as the season wore on.

Ayo Dosunmu is a tough player with a still-developing shot. But his lack of size and poor control over the game makes him a questionable pick at point guard.

Just two weeks to go until the NBA Draft. We still have a community mock draft coming out next week and then a final mock draft due out before the Draft. Feel free to leave your thoughts and draft questions in the comments below or online @omagicdaily on Twitter.