Cole Anthony can make the leap to stardom to guide the Orlando Magic

What is the first step in an NBA career to know you are headed in the right direction?

No it is not the Rookie of the Year Award. Joel Embiid lost the Rookie of the Year to Malcolm Brogdon and Michael Carter-Williams won rookie of the year in 2013 over Victor Oladipo and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

So winning the Rookie of the Year does not dictate your career. But the first real milestone in a player’s career is making an All-Star appearance.

Every year there are first-time All-Stars who make their name known in the league.

Last year, there was seven first-time All-Stars. It is not uncommon for players to make that big leap.

This year it looks like Cole Anthony has the tools to be that first-year All-Star.

Cole Anthony had a strong run in his sophomore year. The Orlando Magic will need someone to make the star leap to get into the Play-In Tournament. Anthony has the skills to do it.

There are a few checkmarks you have to check off in order to even be considered an All-Star-caliber player. And these are the goals that Anthony needs to check off in order to make that All-Star appearance.

The All-Stars of the league are the top 24 players in the league. That means you have to be the best player on a decent team, or a top one or two player on a top team. Either way, you have to be a leader and considered a top player on your team.

These are the things Cole Anthony needs to do to become an All-Star.

Offense

Although defense is one of the most important aspects of basketball, the All-Star game normally favors the best scorers and offensive players in the game. The easiest way for any player to reach the All-Star Game is to score a lot of points.

The only defensive-heavy players who make the All-Star game are normally centers that are rim protectors or the league’s most elite defenders.

But since Anthony is not a center and not a decent defender, he is going to have to get his offense really going in order to be an All-Star.

That is what he did in the first quarter of the 2022 season when Anthony was one of the most dynamic young players in the league.

He already leads the Magic in scoring and assists. But how you stand among your team does not matter in being an all-star. You still have to be a top-24 player in the league.

Cole Anthony averaged 16.3 points per game and 5.7 assists per game. This is really good but not quite good enough to be an All-Star.

The only players to average fewer than 20 points per game and be an All-Star were Rudy Gobert, Jarrett Allen, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins and Chris Paul.

Allen and Gobert both averaged more than 15 points per game and were arguably the two best rim protectors in the league.

Green is a great passer, rebounder and a top-five defender on a title contender (and eventual champion). Wiggins was an elite defender and the best healthy small forward in the West. Not to mention he got a boost from K-Pop fans in fan voting.

And Chris Paul averaged just fewer than 15 points per game but led the league in assists while leading the best team in the league, at least at that time.

So Anthony is going to have to get his scoring and assists up to be an All-Star since those are his main skills. Not to mention, the Magic have to win more games to get noticed.

The Magic have three potential players who can be 20-point-per-game scorers. Cole Anthony, Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero can all hit the 20-point-per-game mark. Someone is going to emerge as the team’s top scorer.

The reality is that it may not be Anthony.

Anthony may even have to compete to maintain his starting point guard spot. Markelle Fultz is set to return to full health after his post-All-Star cameo last year.

Anthony has spent his offseason getting better, but there is still stiff competition for what his role could ultimately be.

He was 51st in the league in scoring which definitely needs to improve if he wants to be an All-Star. He averaged more points per game then four All-Stars. But since scoring will be his main bid for an All-Star, game he needs to hit that mystical 20-point-per-game mark.

He is very capable of getting there. A scoring burst should come this year with some help on the offense.

Last season, Anthony handled the ball a majority of the time and had to take most of the shots as he lead the team in field goal attempts.

Opposing teams would game plan mostly for Anthony and he would often see the other team’s best defender as his matchup.

This year with the rise of Franz Wagner, the addition of Paolo Banchero and hopefully a better second year from Jalen Suggs, he should have a lot of the offensive load taken off of him.

Anthony had to force a lot of shots, and take matters into his own hands a lot last year which lead to low shooting percentages. This year he should get better looks and be able to let the offense come to him with all this added help.

Not only will this help give him more scoring opportunities but should allow him to get more assists. Since he will still be the primary ball handler, he should get a lot of opportunity to get assists and get his teammates better shots.

He was already 19th in the league in assists per game so if he can jump into that top 10-15 range he should be in a way better position to be an all-star.

Only 27 players scored 20-plus points per game, so if he can be a top-30 scorer and top 15 in assists it would be very hard not to give him an All-Star bid.

It will be even harder to not make him an all-star if this leap in stats comes with team success.

Team Success

Every All-Star was on a top 10 team in their conference and made the Play-In Tournament, with the exception of LeBron James. He is obviously a top-24 player in the league, even though his team finished 11th in the east.

So in order for Cole Anthony to be an All-Star, the Orlando Magic have to be at least fighting for a play-in spot by the All-Star break. In the past few years, you might laugh and stop reading the article here, but this is the year that they can actually compete for a play-in spot.

The Magic will not tank, or be satisfied with being a top pick in the draft again. The Magic already have a great young core, it is just time to develop their young players.

They drafted Paolo Banchero with the top pick. And he already looks like the best rookie in his class and a future star. They have Franz Wagner, who has looked great in EuoroBasket and who had a terrific rookie season. They also have Jalen Suggs, who is looking to have a bounce-back sophomore season.

This is a young roster who will make mistakes and learn but can definitely compete for a play-in spot.

This is a year where they can compete and get some experience playing in some playoff-level basketball. They have the young core and talent to make Play-In Tournament, especially if Anthony makes another jump that everyone is expecting him to make.

For the Magic to make that kind of a leap, some individual player is going to have to take the leap with them.

If they do make this play-in push and Anthony is leading the way, it again will be hard to not give him an All-Star vote.

Anthony is a star in the making and to solidify that in his young career. If he is going to make an All-Star Game, this is the year for him to do it and establish himself as a clear part of the Magic’s future.

He needs to be a 20-point-per-game scorer to do that. His overall statistics will need to take a sizable leap. But being a great offensive talent will not get you there alone, you have to be the best player on a team that is in playoff contention.

By no means do the Magic have to be the top seed for him to do that. There are plenty of young players who help their team get into the playoff picture and then find themselves in the All-Star Game.

If Anthony jumps up to these marks it should directly lead to team success, along with the addition of some help. This team can make a play-in run as long as they take it game by game and learn from their mistakes.

If Anthony makes another leap, and the team succeeds behind this leap, then a Cole Anthony all-star appearance looks to be on the way next season.

Someone will have to make this leap. There is no reason to believe it cannot be Anthony this year.