Orlando Magic have punted 2nd round picks, some with good reason

Orlando Magic’s 2nd round pick history

2019 Draft

But the Orlando Magic traded all of their second-round opportunities after making the Playoffs in 2019.

They traded one second-round pick (Carsen Edwards was later selected) as part of the Markelle Fultz trade. Good idea.

They selected Talen Horton-Tucker with the 46th pick and traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers for a 2020 second-round pick (also later traded). Horton-Tucker has played four seasons averaging 9.8 points per game for his career.

Other players selected in the second round include Daniel Gafford, Eric Paschall and Bol Bol. So maybe that opportunity was not missed on and this was a good draft to trade out of.

2020 Draft

So in 2020, coming off a second straight playoff appearance. The Magic again punted on using their second-round picks.

They traded one 2020 second-round pick that became Paul Reed (a Wekiva High School alum) to the Philadelphia 76ers and another pick that became Jordan Nwora to the Bucks for two future picks (one of which was included in Sunday’s trade).

In making these two trades, the Magic passed up on opportunities to add Isaiah Joe and Kenyon Martin Jr. Not exactly star players or even consistent rotation players, but still players who could have helped the team in some respects.

This should make it clear that the second round is not easily mined. And while the Magic certainly could have used an influx of cheap talent during this stretch when the team was cash-strapped and sitting near the salary cap.

But there were not many players to pick from that ended up making it from the middle of the second round. The pickings certainly typically become slimmer the deeper you get into the draft. And that might be why Orlando felt comfortable sending away the picks they did in the present.