Orlando Magic Player Comparisons: What’s in store for the sophomores

Orlando Magic Player Comparisons

R.J. Hampton

FiveThirtyEight: Troy Brown Jr., Javaris Crittenton, Kevin Porter Jr.
Kevin O’Connor, The Ringer: Will Barton, Dante Exum, Rodrigue Beaubois
NBADraft.net: Dante Exum

When R.J. Hampton arrived in Orlando, nobody really knew what to make of him.

Hampton, from the Draft process, was viewed as a talented and athletic guard with clear areas of improvement. He struggled in his lone year overseas (having foregone the college route) and then could not break through the Denver Nuggets’ rotation as they fought for seeding and to compete for a title. A bout with COVID in February only further limited his time.

Hampton undoubtedly needed something of a fresh start. He needed the opportunity to play more than anything else and let that talent grow a bit more.

Nobody took advantage of his time after the trade deadline quite like Hampton. He averaged 11.2 points per game with a 48.2-percent effective field goal percentage in 26 games with the Magic and admittedly limited role. He won the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month in May.

There were certainly some warning signs. Hampton was largely coming off the bench and accumulated plenty of those stats in the time that might be considered “garbage” time at the end of games. But it is better that he can do those things rather than he cannot.

R.J. Hampton took a backseat role at Summer League (much like Cole Anthony). But he still displayed an improved 3-point stroke, hitting four of his nine 3-pointers across three games and averaging 7.0 points per game.

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Hampton’s development as a 3-point shooter will be key in determining what he can become. Playing with the confidence that he will get playing time too will be a key to his development.

The biggest skill he brought immediately to the table was his end-to-end speed. The promise of playing in a faster-paced offense suggests Hampton could use that speed much more effectively with this young group.

Of all the Magic’s second-year players, Hampton feels like he has the most limitless ceiling because of this skill. He just has to learn how and when to use his speed and then how to operate in the half-court as both a playmaker and a shooter.

Those are still big skills he has to close down. And his player comparisons seem to hint at that.

His pre-draft comparisons focused on speedy guards with still-developing skills. Before Dante Exum’s ACL injuries, Exum was drafted for the speed and versatility he could bring. He was an explosive finisher and a potentially strong defender. Injuries are the only thing that derailed his career.

Rodrigue Beaubois was not nearly as skilled or accomplished entering the NBA, but speed was his big attractor.

It is no coincidence that Hampton reminded people of these players.

His FiveThirtyEight comparisons also point to some of this speed, although they are much quieter on his potential role. Both Troy Brown and Javaris Crittenton struggled to find their footing in the league. Brown is still working toward. Crittenton’s career was derailed by his off-court troubles.

Hampton could very well be the one player who gets squeezed out of the rotation among the team’s young players because of the uncertainty about his future and the uncertainty about his present.

There are going to be some major fights and battles to come in training camp. Hampton has a lot to prove to make his mark.

And there is certainly still a mark to make for him and the other two sophomores on the team.