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C.J. Watson Starts in Place of Injured Shooting Guards

Josh Cohen
Digital News Manager

By John Denton
Jan. 20, 2017

ORLANDO – Forced to make a move because of injuries to shooting guards Evan Fournier and Jodie Meeks, Orlando Magic coach Frank Vogel promoted veteran C.J. Watson to the starting lineup on Friday night.

Vogel gave thought to moving Mario Hezonja into the starting five, but he wants to keep the second-year swingman at the small forward position because of defensive reasons.

Watson, the Magic’s most veteran player in his 10th NBA season, got the nod at the starting shooting guard slot because of his history of strong defense and his ability to play both guard spots offensively and defensively. Also, it gives Vogel the flexibility to use several point guard/shooting guard combinations throughout games.

``He’s been solid for us all year,’’ Vogel said of Watson, who came into Friday averaging 2.6 points, 1.3 assists and 1.2 rebounds a game. ``I’ve been pretty consistent all season that when we have a guy out and the next guy on the depth chart moves up.

``That’s what we’ll look at because we have the opportunity to play D.J. (Augustin) and (point guard) Elfrid (Payton) together and C.J. and Elfrid together also,’’ Vogel continued. ``You can see some bigger lineups with Aaron (Gordon) and Jeff (Green) together and Mario and Jeff together.’’

Vogel is having to get creative after the Magic lost starter Fournier and Meeks in the past week to injuries. Fournier missed his fourth straight game on Friday because of a bruised right heel injury, while Meeks dislocated his right thumb and sprained two ligaments in the joint in Wednesday’s loss in New Orleans. There is no timetable on Fournier’s fluid return, while Meeks is expected to miss four-to-six weeks.

HAPPY HEZONJA: With the Magic being severely short-handed, Hezonja’s playing time is expected to rise in the days and games ahead. But Vogel wants to keep the 21-year-old exclusively at the small forward position rather than also rotating him in at the shooting guard slot.

``We’re trying to keep Mario in a position where he can be successful and play more of the small forward role than the shooting guard role,’’ Vogel said. ``We like him better offensively and defensively against like-sized guys because he’s struggled against the smaller guys.’’

Hezonja, who has failed to get into 13 games this season, admitted on Friday that it hasn’t always been easy understanding that he must wait for his time to come. Teammates such as Nikola Vucevic and Elfrid Payton has talked to him regularly about needing to stay ready so that he can take advantage of the moment when he’s called upon, and Hezonja has done that by working out two and three times a day to stay in shape.

``For me, it was super hard because … I want it all immediately,’’ said Hezonja, a native of Croatia who has played professionally in Europe since he was 13 years old. ``It’s been hard for me, personally, to be patient like that, but it’s working. At the beginning, I was like, `I don’t trust you (when told that his time would come).’ But they’ve been around and know what they are saying. It wasn’t because they didn’t like me; it was to make me better. It takes time and as the time is going by, you realize that you have to be (patient). So I appreciate it.’’

WATSON WILLING TO SPEAK UP: Watson is one of the quietest and most unassuming players in the Magic’s locker room, and he embraces his low-key persona with a Twitter handle and a foundation centered around his nickname of ``Quiet Storm.’’

Because he is in a position now where he is starting and the Magic have gone through some prolonged struggles, Watson has looked for chances to speak up and spread his veteran savvy around the team. Calling guys out and being loud will never be Watson’s style, but he isn’t afraid to address teammates if the need arises, he said. And he will always try to lead by example with how hard he plays and how he keeps himself in shape.

``I speak up at times, but it just depends on the situation,’’ Watson said. ``I try to lead by example. I try to play hard, leave it all out there on the court and hope that guys will follow.’’

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