2023 NBA Draft Orlando Magic Daily Big Board 1.5: After the Madness

2023 NBA Draft Orlando Magic Big Board 1.5

The Risers

The biggest riser in this NCAA Tournament has to be UConn’s Jordan Hawkins. He is going to get the most benefit from winning a championship. He did not put on an undeniable show — and the illness that slowed him down in the Final Four was a big storyline at the end — but he was solid nonetheless.

For the season, Hawkins averaged 16.2 points per game while shooting 38.8 percent from deep on 7.6 attempts per game. He made 88.7 percent of his free throws. He was a high-volume 3-point shooter able to hit shots on the move pretty easily. And Dan Hurley runs an NBA-style offense which makes it easy to envision how Hawkins can fit.

His game took a step up in the NCAA Tournament. He averaged 16.3 points per game on 43.5-percent shooting overall and 50.0-percent shooting from deep (21 for 42 in the Tournament). Hawkins is not afraid to let it fly and it would not be surprising to see him continue to get a bump up in the draft process.

Kentucky had an up-and-down season and a lot of that is normal for them because of how generally young they are. Cason Wallace, Kentucky’s point guard, needed some time to develop. But he turned it on toward the end of the season, averaging 12.4 points per game and 4.8 assists per game with 1.8 steals per game in his final 13 games. The Wildcats are going to need strong play from Wallace to advance in this tournament.

Take your pick between Derreck Lively and Kyle Filipowski for centers from Duke. This is clearly not a draft rife with center — expect the Orlando Magic to hunt for a backup center somewhere.

I like Lively more here. He is the clearly more talented and higher-upside play even after averaging 5.2 points per game and 5.4 rebounds per game in a disappointing season overall. He was still All-ACC Defensive team caliber.

Filipowski is maybe a bit more offensively skilled and polished right now averaging 15.1 points per game and 9.0 rebounds per game. He too can have his moments defensively. But Lively is the guy who could hit big in the bigger picture.

Jalen Hood-Schofino was part of a pair of Indiana players who consistently put up impressive numbers but struggled to get Indiana off the ground this year. Schofino is a dynamic player who can score in a variety of ways and had some solid burst games in his freshman year (his teammate Trayce Jackson-Davis was racking up triple-doubles throughout the year).

Hood-Schofino averaged 13.5 points per game, 4.1 rebounds per game and 3.7 assists per game. He had some big games, but he was a volume scorer with a lot of inefficiency.

His 33.3-percent 3-point shooting is the biggest concern for how he translates to the NBA. And his 77.6-percent shooting from three is not inspiring a ton of confidence that this will make a significant improvement.

Well, we know the Orlando Magic love their Michigan men. And so the guy to watch here is sharpshooter Jett Howard. Howard shot 36.8 percent on 7.3 3-pointers per game. Assumedly, he would have to do a lot less self-creating when he hits the NBA. At 6-foot-8, he has really good size too. Howard will not be in the NCAA Tournament with Michigan playing in the NIT. But he could be someone who can shoot up draft boards with a good performance and shooting prowess.

Another local guy! The Lake Highland Prep alum went to Ohio State and proceeded to score 16.3 points per game his freshman year while shooting 40.5 percent from three on 4.5 3-point attempts per game. He plays bigger than his size. But his 3-point shot has to continue to develop to have a good chance at the NBA. His 83.0 percent free throw percentage suggests he might.

We will be back with our first mock draft after the season ends and then do another big board before the NBA Draft Lottery on May 16.