We have all heard it; "This year's NBA draft is going to be the greatest of all time." I must say, I believe it will definitely rival the draft of 1996 and 2003. The draft class is stacked. There is no team in the League that is hoping for this Draft class to be epic, more than the Orlando Magic. If the Draft lives up to its billing, and the ping pong balls fall the right way, The Magic may be at the top of the east sooner than anyone could have imagined.
The Magic have 2 first round picks in this years draft; their own and the worse of the Knicks or Nuggets picks, which as of now will definitely still be in the lottery. As of now the Magic have (in a perfect ping pong ball world) the 3rd and 13th pick. With those picks, they would pick up a potential superstar at the #3 pick, assuming Embiid, Parker, Randle and Wiggins come out.
Now, there is obviously a chance that the Draft:
A) Ends up not being what we expect
B) The magic get screwed in the draft lottery and end up with two late lottery picks, assume the last two 13 and 14.
In scenario A, the Magic would stay at the Bottom of the East and continue to get high draft picks and eventually lure a free agent to play with the potential of the young promising team.
In Scenario B, the Magic wouldn't be that bad off. In that scenario they may end up with 2 guys like Tyler Ennis from Syracuse and Kyle Anderson from UCLA. Either way, everyone believes this year is full of real prospects so while they may miss out all perrenial all stars they could potentially draft guys that a solid position players in the league for a long time. Still an okay scenario considering that as of now they are in Position to have a pretty competitive team in any possible draft day scenario.
Most Realistic Scenario
(Franchise Rises to top of east in 3-4 Years)
The Draft Lottery is a beast of its own, ping pong balls deciding the future of a franchise. Generally the pre-lottery order stays pat, but rarely do the first 5 picks go the way they should. For arguments sake, lets assume the Magic both move up from 3 to 2 or 1 or they stay at 3 or fall ball to 4. Either way they will pick up one of the 4 above mentioned players. They have 3 positions that need improvement; Point Guard, Small Forward and Power Forward. I believe the Magic will do what it takes to keep Oladipo, Afflalo, Tobias Harris and Vucevic around, as they should. Afflalo may have some trade Value down the road but as of now, they should and I believe will hold onto him.
In the best case scenario the Orlando Magic will end up with their 3rd pick and a 10-13 pick. Assume they pick up Wiggins OR Parker OR Randle and Tyler Ennis.
In that Scenario where they select Wiggins/Parker and Ennis, their team backbone would look something like this.
PG SG SF PF C
Nelson Oladipo Wiggins/Parker Nicholson Vucevic
Ennis Afflalo Harris Maxiel
They may of course take Embiid or Randle
PG SG SF PF/C
Nelson Oladipo Harris Vucevic
Ennis Afflalo Randle/Embiid
Nicholson
Maxiel
In either Scenario the Magic will have 4 positions filled by players that should be mainstays for a While.
That being said, in the summer of 2015 there are free agents that can impact a team in a serious way. The Magic will have some money free and Maxiel and Nelson come off of the books. Vucevic will become a FA as well but the Magic should resign him, and that shouldn't be difficult bc of the promise of the team and they can offer him the most money.
Best Case Scenario
(Franchise Altered Immediately)
As I said before, the draft has produced some interesting scenarios, most recently the Cavaliers acquired the First overall pick (from the Clippers) which turned into Kyrie Irving. Their second pick (the 4th) was used on Triston Thompson (fail.)
Lets pretend the Magic are just as Fortunate and are able to somehow land two of the top 4 picks. Well in that case, the Magic will be in a position to pick up 2 marquee players, even with the possibility of Pairing ip fellow Kansas Jayhawks, Wiggins and Embiid. In any scenario they will immediately be better off for the future, they will be in a position that is unlike anything we have seen since the OKC thunder, and while the Thunder were forced to trade Harden, the Magic should be able to keep Oladipo, the 2 draft Picks, Vuceviv and a future free agent because Orlando, believe it or not, is a pretty well off franchise. Their owner Richard Devos, according the Forbes, is only the 60th wealthiest person in the USA and wants to win!
Why will free agents come?
Orlando is a beautiful city, they have a state of the art stadium and training facility (summer league is held there.) Their young pieces are promising Additionally, they have already done it before proving they are not afraid to PAY UP TO WIN!
Either way, the Magic are set for a franchise changing year in 2014. I am excited to see it happen, the city and the fans deserve it. In addition, they are in the ever weak East whose top teams the Pacers and Heat will all be falling in 3-4 years when the Magic will be peaking.
About me: My name is Steven and I love Basketball. I have recently changed careers and am hoping one day to produce a TV Show on NBATV and a Sports Magazine with a twist.
Follow me at @FunnyNBAGuy
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