3. Jonathan Isaac
The one player on this list who is the biggest unknown has to be Jonathan Isaac. As a rookie last season, he played in only 27 games (starting 10 of them) because of consistent ankle problems.
After a strong showing in Summer League, just having Isaac healthy and on the court for 70 games would be great, but he has a chance to really excel under new head coach Steve Clifford and become Orlando’s best player.
In the short time Isaac was on the court last year, the Magic had a defensive rating of 101.1. This rocketed up to 107.7 when he was unavailable.
That’s a small sample size, but it still makes him an enticing prospect. Add in the fact he was a capable 3-point shooter in college (34.8 percent) and showed flashes last season, and there’s every reason to think he can be the Magic’s best player.
Isaac is the kind of versatile big that the league has trended towards, and as such, he brings the kind of skill-set most others on this team just do not. We haven’t seen nearly enough of what he can do on the court, but by the end of next season he may be irreplaceable.