Orlando Magic: Complete 2017 offseason grades

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Draft pick No. 1

With the sixth pick on the night, many felt that the Magic were in a tough position with who they should take.

The consensus was that the top five guys were all pretty much locks at that point, leaving the team with the task of picking a player based on talent or fit.

In the end they did both, kind of. Jonathan Isaac was a stretch at No. 6 in the eyes of some, while for others, his play warranted the charge up the board that eventually came to pass.

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We’ll never know how guys like Dennis Smith Jr. and Malik Monk would have fit on this roster, but both were available to the Magic when they were called. What we do know is that both were offensively gifted college players, with Smith in particular looking like he could have usurped Elfrid Payton if given the chance.

However, Isaac has the kind of frame and skill-set that translates really well to the league as we know it today.

As is stands, the team currently has a lot of players with clearly defined roles that harken back to the more stringent, position heavy basketball that was prevalent as little as five years ago.

Bismack Biyombo (rim protector, screening), Elfrid Payton (traditional, almost old-school point guard) and Aaron Gordon (pure athleticism, for the moment at least) aren’t overly flexible.

Isaac can change that, either as a center who can stretch the floor in a small-ball lineup, or in his more traditional power forward role.

He could even add versatility as playing the 3, with the 7.8 rebounds per game and 34.8 percent he shot from deep during his lone season at Florida State being noteworthy numbers.

At only 19 years old, expectations must be tapered with what Isaac can do his rookie year. But the feeling is this team finally has a young player worth building around.

Grade: B

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