Orlando Magic: 3 reasons Justin Jackson was a bad pick
By Luke Duffy
Despite a largely positive 2018 NBA Draft for the Orlando Magic, the addition of Justin Jackson through a trade was a head-scratcher.
The Orlando Magic had three picks in the 2018 NBA Draft, using their lottery selection on Mohamed Bamba and one of their second round picks on Melvin Frazier. It may be too early to tell, but for now, the additions of both Bamba and Frazier can be viewed as good ones.
Then came the third pick of the night, via a trade with the Denver Nuggets. Although the team selected forward Jarred Vanderbilt with the 41st pick, he was subsequently flipped to the Nuggets in exchange for Justin Jackson, whom was taken 43rd.
Jackson is a 6’7″ forward who spent two seasons with Maryland before declaring for the draft. As we’ll see though, the reasons for the Magic going after Jackson aren’t quite clear at the moment.
They are trying to build a versatile roster full of wings who can switch defensively for the modern NBA they now find themselves in, but it is unclear how much Jackson will help in this area.
It was later revealed that the Magic would receive a second round pick from the Nuggets next season as part of the deal, which certainly does help the outlook of the exchange.
Although Jackson may prove to be an asset to the team in time, already it feels like the odds of him every being a significant contributor on this team are slim. Here are three reasons the pick was a bad one, which is disheartening after all of the positivity that the Magic’s first two selections generated.