Orlando Magic 2022 NBA Draft: 3 rising, 3 falling after the NCAA Tournament

2022 NBA Draft: 3 Rising and 3 Falling after the NCAA Tournament

Falling: AJ Griffin, Duke

It was a fun story, if not a panicked one, following the Orlando Magic’s loss to the Toronto Raptors on Friday.

Raptors assistant coach (and former Magic assistant coach) Adrian Griffin could not get a flight out of Orlando to New Orleans for Saturday’s Final Four game. Storms hit the Orlando area hard Saturday, grounding planes at Orlando International Airport.

Griffin did the only thing a sane father would do. He rented a car and drove through the night from Orlando to New Orleans to see his son, AJ Griffin, play in the Final Four.

Duke put up a good fight and showed why the team has plenty of talent. But his son AJ Griffin has always had a hard time standing out. That is partly because his game is about doing everything, filling in gaps for his team.

Duke obviously needed just a bit more to get over the hump and get to the national title game.

Griffin scored only six points on 1-for-7 shooting, missing all four of his 3-pointers in the loss to North Carolina on Saturday. He had a wild up-and-down showing in the Tournament, topping off at 18 points on 7-for-9 shooting against Arkansas in the Elite Eight.

Griffin was not a scoring machine by any means, averaging only 10.4 points per game. His role was to be a 3-and-D player, draining 3-pointers and defending the best player on the other team. Every team needs that.

But those hoping to use a top-10 pick on the Duke forward and see if they could coax more out of him might end up disappointed. In the NCAA Tournament, Duke needed consistency from this supporting player and he did not stand out.

Again, that just might be how Griffin prefers to play.