matt lloyd

Josh Cohen

ORLANDO –  While the decision to remain a candidate for the NBA Draft or return to UCF figures to be a difficult one for Tacko Fall, the center has faced a dilemma nearly as massive as his 7-foot-6, 300-pound frame before.

Following his junior season of high school at tiny Liberty Christian Prep in Tavares, Fla., Fall was first noticed and scouted by former UCF assistant coach Tim Thomas. Eventually, Fall – a native of Dakar, Senegal who had come to the U.S. just two years earlier – gave a verbal commitment to play basketball for the nearby Knights. As his game continued to grow and begin to match his enormous size – a process that was helped greatly by playing for the Orlando-based AAU team sponsored by former NBA standout Amare Stoudemire – Fall suddenly had approximately 40 schools offering him basketball scholarships.

Among those schools, Georgetown University used Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer and Congolese center Dikembe Mutombo to try and recruit the big man to play for the Hoyas. Meanwhile, former Georgia Tech assistant coach Mamadou N’Diaye – one of the men responsible for helping bring Fall to the U.S. from Senegal – was also hot after the services of the big man.

UCF, coached formerly by Donnie Jones, wanted to do everything in its power to hang onto the blossoming big man, so they went to his mother for assistance. The only problem was that she spoke only French and the school had to enlist the services of French lecturer Dr. Elizabeth Giltner to communicate.

Together, all sides were all able to convince Fall that he would be best-served attending UCF and remaining close to his host family, Davis and Mandy Wettstein. Fall said on Thursday that there was another reason why he chose to stick with a UCF team that committed to him long before many others did.

``I’m loyal and I like to keep my word,’’ Fall said following a workout with the Orlando Magic. ``If I say one thing, I don’t want to change it. It was hard because there were a lot of the biggest schools making really good points. But I chose to stay at UCF because of everything that I saw that we could accomplish and everything that I could do for UCF and the city.’’

Fall’s loyalty toward UCF is tugging at him once again, but he also wants to explore his possibilities as a shot-swatting big man at the NBA level. Fall made massive gains in his strength, conditioning and overall understanding of the game between his freshman and sophomore seasons and he is now considering whether he should try his luck in the June 22nd NBA Draft or return to UCF for another year of seasoning.

Fall has until the NCAA-mandated date of May 24 (Wednesday) to decide whether to keep his name draft eligible or return to college for a junior season. He’s now worked out for the Magic, Lakers and Celtics and he said the feedback that he’s gotten will go a long way in helping him make another highly stressful decision.

``Regardless (of which decision he makes), I’ll be in a good position,’’ said Fall, who has another workout scheduled with the Utah Jazz and he could go through drills next week with the Houston Rockets. ``Definitely, if I stay in college, I feel I will make bigger jumps like I did last year. After I get more feedback and I talk to (UCF) coach (Johnny Dawkins) and my family, then I’ll know and I’ll make a decision.’’

Though most mock drafts don’t have Fall being picked until late in the second round of the NBA Draft – if at all – he is an intriguing prospect to many NBA teams because of the major strides that he has made in such a short amount of time playing the sport. A soccer player while sprouting up in Senegal’s capital city and someone not expected to grow to be 7-foot-6 because of the relatively average heights of his father (6-foot) and mother (5-foot-9), Fall didn’t start playing basketball until he was 15 years old.

His first-ever college game at UCF saw him face off against fellow 7-foot-6 Senegalese center Mamadou N’Diaye, then with UC Irvine for the tallest tip-off in NCAA history. Fall mostly struggled with his strength, conditioning and coordination as a college freshman, averaging 7.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in just 17.6 minutes a game for the Knights.

Following a full year of strength and conditioning work, Fall’s production started to climb toward his nearly 10-foot standing reach and eight-foot wingspan. This past season, he had four 20-point games, 17 double-digit rebound nights and 15 performances with at least three blocks. Not only did he help UCF lead the nation in field goal defense (36.1 percent) and win the American Athletic Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year award, he was a key forced in the Knights making it to the NIT semifinals. In what could prove to be his final game at the collegiate level, Fall swatted six shots and added seven points and five rebounds before fouling out.

That dramatic growth led the Magic – more specifically interim GM Matt Lloyd – to notice the impact that a rim-protecting center like Fall could have on a NBA team.

``We’re lucky because he’s in our backyard and we’ve seen him probably more than any other (NBA) team because we’ve gone (to UCF) to watch him against the opponents and he’s gotten much better,’’ Lloyd said of Fall, who had big games against Mississippi State (26 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks), Villanova (20 points, 13 rebounds and one block) and Miami (Ohio)(31 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks) and averaged 10.9 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.6 blocks while shooting 71.5 percent as a sophomore. ``Coach Dawkins and their staff have done an amazing job getting him in shape and getting him stronger and he’s such a bright personality. He’s such a smart and intelligent kid that he brightens up the room when he comes in.’’

Most likely, Fall still has a lot of work to go until he is NBA-ready because of the physicality, mobility and stamina needed to play at the highest level. If he does turn pro, he very well could spend a season in the NBA Development League in hopes that he can continue to grow his game. And if he goes back to UCF, he figures to be more of a sure-thing draft pick this time next year.

An ideal scenario, he said, would be landing with the Magic and staying near an Orlando area that he had choices to flee coming out of high school, but he instead decided to remain true to his word.

``I’ve been to a couple of Magic games and I love this city,’’ he said, referring to Orlando. ``This city has given me a lot since high school. Part of the reason that I chose UCF is that I love the city. It’s a great city.’’

Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors.

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UCF's Tacko Fall Works Out With Magic

ORLANDO – History strongly suggests that the Orlando Magic can snag a major, difference-making player with the No. 6 pick out of the June 22nd NBA Draft. And even if there isn’t a Larry Bird – the sixth overall selection in 1979 – available, the Magic are still confident that there will be a talented player to be had in a draft that is considered especially deep.

Orlando didn’t get the result that it wanted in Tuesday night’s NBA Draft Lottery in New York, dropping to the No. 6 selection when it was improbably passed by Sacramento Kings. Boston, the Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Sacramento will comprise the top five picks, leaving Orlando at sixth.

Still, a Magic contingent of CEO Alex Martins, COO Charlie Freeman, Senior Vice President Pat Williams, Interim GM Matt Lloyd and head coach Frank Vogel remained undeterred by the turn of events because of the options still expected to be available.

Lloyd, who is running Orlando’s draft prep following the April 13 firing of Rob Hennigan, scouted 75-to-80 college and international games over the past year and he is confident that the Magic will still come out of next month’s draft with a player of their liking.

``From a philosophical perspective we’re going to look at trying to get a player who we think can be a star,’’ said Lloyd, a candidate for the Magic’s long-term GM gig. ``There are going to be players in that range (of the sixth pick) who we think can outkick their coverage from where they���re picked. We’re going to get them all in, get them all lineup up and we’re going to pick the best one.’’

Vogel, who admitted to feeling ``awkward’’ on the dais for the made-for-TV portion of the NBA Draft Lottery because of the tension of the teams, said there’s no reason why the Magic can’t mine the draft for an elite player with the No. 6 pick. During his lengthy run in Indiana while coaching the Pacers, Vogel had tremendous success with players such as Paul George (the No. 10 pick in 2010), David West (the No. 18 pick in 2003), Danny Granger (the No. 17 pick in 2005), Roy Hibbert (the No. 17 pick in 2008), George Hill (the No. 26 pick in 2008) and Lance Stephenson (the No. 40 pick in 2010).

``You feel that way every year that if you do your homework, you are going to get a good player,’’ said Vogel, who recently completed his first season as Orlando’s head coach. ``This is a deep draft and this is why we continued to preach winning down at the end of the season because there’s so many times where the sixth pick turns out to be as good as the first pick or the 10th pick is as good as the first. We’ve had a lot of luck in my career with players who weren’t (number) one, two or three picks and they turned into top players. So, that’s the plan here.’’

Point guards are expected to dominate the early stages of next month’s draft what with Washington’s Markelle Fultz, UCLA’s Lonzo Ball and Kentucky’s D’Aaron Fox atop most of the mock scenarios. Forwards Josh Jackson (Kansas), Jayson Tatum (Duke) and Jonathan Isaac (Florida State) could still be around for the Magic at No. 6, while other dynamic guards such as Dennis Smith Jr. (N.C. State) or Malik Monk (Kentucky) might be a fit for Orlando.

``Playing the pick-and-roll, I think that’s something I can do amazingly and I don’t think a lot of people have seen that from me,’’ Monk said at Tuesday’s lottery. ``That’s what’s going to happen in the (NBA) and it’s something I want to show everybody.’’

The history of the NBA Draft suggests that the Magic certainly can find success while picking sixth. Bird is unquestionably the best player ever chosen with the No. 6 selection, but Hall of Famer Lenny Wilkens isn’t far behind. Other NBA champions Adrian Dantley, Kenny Smith, Fred Brown, Johnny Kerr were also chosen sixth overall. More recently, Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard, a two-time All-NBA performer and a two-time all-star, has had loads of success at the NBA level after being mostly overlooked as a prospect on draft night in 2012.

``There are some bigs, some wings and some guards that will be there for us, so we’re not worried about picking No. 6,’’ Vogel stressed. ``Again, the depth of talent (in this draft class) is what is most impressive and exciting. And it really doesn’t matter what position you’re looking for, there will be players there for us at No. 6.’’

Another blow for the Magic came when the Lakers nabbed the No. 2 pick on Tuesday. By staying in the draft’s top-three picks, L.A. hung onto its first-round pick in 2019 and will instead convey second-round selections this season (No. 33 overall) and next season to Orlando. Those are the final pieces of the four-team, 12-player trade in 2012 that shipped center Dwight Howard to the Lakers.

In addition to having the Nos. 6, 33 and 35 picks, Orlando also owns the No. 25 pick courtesy of the Feb. 14 trade of Serge Ibaka to the Toronto Raptors. Owning so many selections should give the Magic flexibility to either move up on draft night or acquire a much-needed veteran player in a trade, Lloyd said. All in all, the interim GM noted, the Magic are still in a solid position going into next month’s draft.

``To come out with six, 25, 33 and 35, that means we’ve got four of the top 35 picks in the draft and the percentages are playing in our favor,’’ Lloyd said. ``So we’re going to have the opportunity to move around a little bit (potentially with trades) and have a handle on the draft. So that’s exciting.’’

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Magic Confident They Can Get Star Player With Sixth Pick

NEW YORK – No one in the basketball world is about to feel sorry for the Orlando Magic’s recent run of bad luck in the NBA Draft Lottery, especially considering how the franchise dominated the proceedings in years past, including the historic win 25 years ago that netted them larger-than-life center Shaquille O’Neal.

Orlando was hoping to recreate that 1992, umm, magic on Tuesday night in the NBA Draft Lottery, but instead it saw its franchise fall to the No. 6 pick in the June 22nd NBA Draft. The Magic came into the night armed with the fifth-best odds at landing the No. 1 pick and holding a solid shot at staying in the top five. However, it dropped to sixth and, to make matters worse, it whiffed on nabbing a future first-round draft choice from the rival Los Angeles Lakers.

Magic interim GM Matt Lloyd said time and again following Tuesday’s lottery that falling to sixth wasn’t catastrophic for the franchise because of the depth of talent in next month’s draft.

``It’s not what we hoped for, but at the same time we’re going to be able to expose an opportunity here,’’ said Lloyd, who watched the proceedings from the crowd and toted a trendy Magic blue fidget spinner as a good-luck gadget. ``The work that our staff has done and all the research that we’ve done, it’s going to pay off in a very positive manner. So, we’re still excited.’’

Magic head coach Frank Vogel, who represented the franchise on the podium for the made-for-TV proceedings, echoed the sentiments of Lloyd. Vogel is working closely with Lloyd to work out and evaluate college prospects and he’s convinced that Orlando can still snag an elite player at No. 6.

``You feel that way every year that if you do your homework, you are going to get a good player,’’ Vogel said. ``This is a deep draft and this is why we continued to preach winning down at the end of the season because there’s so many times where the sixth pick turns out to be as good as the first pick or the 10th pick is as good as the first. We’ve had a lot of luck in my career with one, two or three picks and them turning into top players, so that’s the plan here.’’

The Boston Celtics, which moved into the Eastern Conference Finals on Monday night, won Tuesday’s Draft Lottery – a position they got via the Brooklyn Nets’ acquisition of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry several years earlier.

It was the third consecutive year that the team with the best odds captured the top spot in the NBA Draft. That wasn’t the case at all from 2004 (when the Magic did it and drafted Dwight Howard) until 2015 (when Minnesota did it and drafted Karl-Anthony Towns). Also, it is the first time ever that the Celtics have won the Draft Lottery in their storied history.

The Lakers will draft second, while Philadelphia is third, Phoenix is fourth, Sacramento is at No. 5 and the Magic are sixth. The rest of the lottery will Minnesota at seventh, New York at eighth, Dallas at ninth, Sacramento at 10th, Charlotte at 11th, Detroit at 12th, Denver at 13th and Miami at 14th. The Suns, Magic, Timberwolves and Knicks were the teams to fall on Tuesday from where they were slated via their odds.

In addition to dropping to sixth, Orlando also failed in its bid to nab an unprotected first-round pick from the rival Lakers – something that was the final piece of compensation for the 2012 trading of Howard. When the Lakers jumped to the No. 2 pick on Tuesday, it meant that the Magic will now get the No. 33 pick in this June’s draft and another second-round selection in 2018 from the Lakers.

Had the Lakers fallen out of the top three on Tuesday, Philadelphia would have gotten their first-round pick next month and the Magic would have owned their 2019 first-round selection.

It wasn’t to be for the Magic on Tuesday night – not with their own pick or that of the Lakers. Still, the Magic are excited about the prospects of having four draft picks under their control – something that could help them hold a bit of control over the latter stages of the first round.

``To come out with six, 25, 33 and 35, that means we’ve got four of the top 35 picks in the draft and the percentages are playing in our favor,’’ Lloyd said. ``So we’re going to have the opportunity to move around a little bit (potentially with trades) and have a handle on the draft. So it’s exciting.’’

Point guards are expected to dominate the early stages of the June draft. Some mock drafts have playmakers Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox listed as the potential top three picks, and N.C. State’s Dennis Smith Jr. could work his way into that conversation. Forwards Josh Jackson, Jayson Tatum and Jonathan Isaac are also expected to be taken within the top 10 picks, while talent shooting guard Malik Monk could be within range for the Magic at No. 6. No team struggled to shoot from the perimeter more than the Magic last season.

``People talk about this draft being guard heavy; no, it’s player heavy,’’ ESPN analyst and former San Antonio Spurs standout Bruce Bowen said, referring to the depth of the draft.

The NBA’s Draft Lottery is a fickle foray into both faith and fantasy, one where the bounce of a ping-pong ball means almost as much as a bounding basketball and respected executives – many of whom have dedicated their lives to studying the sport – are reduced to rubbing hokey good-luck charms and casting wishful prayers.

No one understands this maddening, yet meaningful process more than the Magic, a franchise that has often played a leading role in the made-for-TV event. Much of the Magic’s past success can be directly traced to winning lotteries – starting with that first victory 25 years ago that resulted in O’Neal donning blue and black pinstripes. Similarly, much of Orlando’s frustration and lack of luck in recent years can be pointed to striking out in the NBA’s annual ping-pong process.

The Magic had the best overall odds in 2013, but dropped to second. They had the third-most chances in 2014 only to see Cleveland and its 1.7 percent odds leap to the top of the field, dropping the Magic to fourth. And in 2015 and ’16, the Magic stayed in their spots heading into the lottery, resulting in the fifth and 11th picks.

Over the past four years, the Magic drafted Victor Oladipo (second in 2013), Aaron Gordon (fourth in 2014) and Mario Hezonja (fifth in 2015). Oladipo was traded to Oklahoma City last June, while the others have yet to enjoy major success at the NBA level. However, the Magic are confident that all three – along with 2014 draft-night trade acquisition Elfrid Payton – are about to enter their primes and return the franchise to prominence.

``Maybe the basketball gods don’t want to be too generous with us right now,’’ joked Magic Senior Vice President Pat Williams, who represented the franchise in the back-stage room where the actual lottery proceedings take place. ``Maybe it will be another 10 years or so until it is our turn (to win the lottery) again.’’

The NBA Draft is June 22, and the Magic are already deep into their preparation. The team sent an army of executives to the Draft Combine in Chicago last week and worked out elite point guard prospect Dennis Smith Jr. in Orlando on Monday. UCF center Tacko Fall, all 7-foot-6 of him, is scheduled to work out in Orlando for the Magic on Thursday. In the days and weeks ahead, dozens of other prospects are expected to come to Orlando for workouts and interviews with Lloyd, Vogel and others.

``From a philosophical perspective, we’re going to try and get a player who we feel can be a star,’’ Lloyd said. ``There’s going to be players in that range that feel can outkick their coverage from where they are picked. We’re going to get them all in, get them all lined up and then we’re going to get the best one.’’

Vogel, who is known for his positivity as a coach, said Tuesday’s results are far from being a setback for the Magic.

``It’s not the end of the world,’’ Vogel said. ``Like we’ve said, this is a deep draft and there are many, many times where you get a player at six, seven or eight or 10 and it ends up being better than the top pick or the No. 2 pick. So we’ll do our homework and we’ll be diligent about the process.

``There’s going to be a good player there for us at six and we’re excited about that,’’ Vogel added.

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Magic Land Sixth Pick in 2017 NBA Draft

ORLANDO – Much the way a reliable friend is always there for someone in a time of need, the NBA’s Draft Lottery has often been the security blanket to cure whatever has ailed the Orlando Magic.

Whether it was providing them the picks that ultimately became franchise fixtures Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway or Dwight Howard, the NBA’s Draft Lottery has often rescued the Magic when they needed it most.

Out of the playoffs since 2012 and in the worst five-year stretch in franchise history, the Magic look to the NBA Draft Lottery once again for a shot-in-the-arm supply of difference-making talent. On Tuesday night, the Magic will finally find out their fate for the June 22nd NBA Draft.

``Getting in that (No. 1) position, I mean, it can change the course of a franchise over the next 15 years,’’ Magic interim GM Matt Lloyd said on Monday.

To win this Draft Lottery and stun the basketball world once again, the Magic must overcome some pretty staggering numerical odds.

Orlando, owners of the NBA’s fifth-worst record this past season, enters Tuesday’s lotto in New York with just an 8.8 percent chance of nabbing the top draft position. They have a 9.65 percent chance of winning the second pick and 10.67 percent odds of landing on the third pick. The strongest odds are that they will stay at No. 5 (26.15 percent) or plunge to No. 6 (35.9 percent). Falling to No. 7 (8.41 percent) or No. 8 (0.37 percent) are also possibilities that the Magic don’t even want to think about.

Lloyd, who took over the Magic’s draft prep following the April 13 firing of GM Rob Hennigan, was a part of a Chicago Bulls franchise that remarkably won the 2008 NBA Draft Lottery despite having the ninth-best odds coming into the night. The Bulls used that No. 1 pick to nab Chicago native, Derrick Rose.

``And three years later he was the MVP of the league,’’ Lloyd noted.

Lloyd, who spent 100-plus nights on the road scouting 75-to-80 college basketball games this past season, considers the June 22 NBA Draft to be ``deep’’ with talent. While there doesn’t seem to be the one transformational player at the top of the draft such as O’Neal, Howard or LeBron James, many do think that the first round will be filled with potential all-star talents. Point guards Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball and D’Aaron Fox sit atop many mock drafts, while there are several others thought to be ready to contribute right away. One such player might be N.C. State point guard Dennis Smith, who worked out in Orlando on Monday.

Magic coach Frank Vogel was at that workout and he is assisting Lloyd with the Magic’s preparation for the June NBA Draft. Vogel, who is sporting a beard and a tan from his time off this summer, will represent the Magic on the podium in New York City on Tuesday night. While he is excited about helping evaluate prospects in the lead-up to the draft, Vogel will be an unwilling participant in the NBA Draft Lottery process for one reason – it’s mostly for teams out of the playoffs.

``It’s a great opportunity for our organization and I hope that I’m never up there again,’’ Vogel joked. ``I’m hoping this is the one and only time that I have to do this. But it is an exciting time to have the opportunity to move up. We’re anxious to have a high pick. And even if we don’t move up, it’s going to mean a lot to our franchise and our future.’’

While Vogel will be on the podium for the made-for-TV unveiling of the lottery, the actual process will be held in a sequestered room earlier in the night. Magic Senior Vice President and co-founder Pat Williams, the man on the stage when Orlando landed the No. 1 picks three times in 1992, ’93 and 2004, will be one of the team’s representatives to the actual lottery proceedings.

The Magic, owners of the No. 25 pick thanks to the midseason trade of Serge Ibaka to Toronto, will also be keeping a close eye on the fate of the Los Angeles Lakers. If the Lakers – who have the third-best odds in the draft – fall out of the top three, their unprotected first-round pick in 2019 will go to the Magic as the final piece of compensation for the 2012 trade involving Howard. If the Lakers stay in the top three, the Magic will get L.A.’s second-round selections this year (the 33rd pick) and next year.

Lloyd will be holding out hope on Tuesday night that the Magic can defy the odds and bring the No. 1 pick back to Orlando once again. He’s even willing to turn to some child gadgets in hopes of calming his own nerves and bringing the Magic some lotto luck.

``I have three nephews all under the age of 10 and they have these fidget spinners. I didn’t know what it was, but on FaceTime I was educated what a Fidget Spinner was,’’ Lloyd joked. ``They sent me one in Magic blue and (on Tuesday) that’s going to be in my right pocket. That’s my good luck charm and probably to stem the tide of nervousness that’s going to come as the teams scroll off the board.’’

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Magic Hoping for Lottery Luck on Tuesday

ORLANDO – Critics of point guard Dennis Smith Jr. question his true difference-making abilities because his N.C. State team not only badly underachieved this past season, but it couldn’t even make the NCAA Tournament because of a 15-17 record.

Supporters of Smith, however, point to the many times when the 6-foot-2, 195-pound guard played the right way by passing out of double teams, remained under control in trying times and didn’t launch into do-everything mode even as he was surrounded by lesser talent.

It’s now up to teams such as the Orlando Magic to determine what kind of player that Smith can be at the NBA level. Smith was in Orlando on Monday, working out for the Magic in front of interim GM Matt Lloyd, head coach Frank Vogel and a gaggle of front-office personnel and scouts.

Like when he played at N.C. State, Smith tried to stay within himself during Monday’s on-court workouts with the Magic and show how he can blend in with almost any situation. He feels now that the struggles that his collegiate team went through – including the firing of head coach Mark Gottfried – will help him at the NBA level.

``I trusted my teammates and I believed that was the right basketball play. That’s the play that I’m going to have to make at the next level, so I’m just going to stick to playing the right way,’’ Smith said prior to going up to sit-down interviews with Magic executives. ``I learned how to bounce back after a loss. That was my first losing season ever since I’ve been playing basketball. I learned how to bounce back and I learned that you’re not going to win every game, especially in an 82-game season. So I think last year was a great experience for me.’’

The Magic will find out on Tuesday night at the NBA Draft Lottery where they will be picking in the June 22 NBA Draft. They enter the lottery with the fifth-best odds at landing the No. 1 pick. Regardless of where the team winds up, Lloyd – the interim GM following the April 13 firing of Rob Hennigan – is confident that the Magic can snag a top-level talent.

``It’s more about the peace of mind of knowing where we’re picking,’’ Lloyd said. ``(With the lottery results) we can get on the phone with the player representatives and get these guys in here to work out and know them better. The scouting part is all done, our research has all been done and our statistical components have all been analyzed. But after (Tuesday’s lottery) we’ll know where our opportunities lie and where we can expose those opportunities.’’

Fresh off last week’s Draft Combine in Chicago where they interviewed 18 players, the Magic hope to bring a variety of first and second-round talent to Orlando over the coming weeks for workouts, interviews and testing. Lloyd, who is a candidate for the GM position, will continue to team with Vogel for the Magic’s draft prep until a full-time President of Basketball Operations/GM is hired.

Smith, who averaged 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals a game as a freshman at N.C. State, is trying to make himself stand out in a draft that it loaded with point guard talent. Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball and D’Aaron Fox are all point guards with scoring and playmaking talents and could very well be the top three picks in the NBA Draft. Smith, who is slotted to go anywhere from five to 12 in various mock drafts, is trying to work his way into that conversation among the top point guards available.

``It’s just being a dog,’’ Smith said when asked what separates him from the other point guards in the draft. ``I always want to win every game and I never back down from anybody.’’

The Magic and other teams could see some of that determination in Smith – a native of Fayetteville, N.C. – in how he bounced back from one of the biggest setbacks of his basketball career. He tore the ACL in a knee in August of 2015, but he worked diligently to get beyond the injury and back on the floor for N.C. State.

``I was sad for about a day or two, but I got over it quick,’’ said Smith, who considers former Magic great Penny Hardaway and current NBA stars LeBron James and Chris Paul as mentors. ``I was back in good spirits, lifting weights in bed and taking it as a challenge. I’ve got too much faith in the Lord (to think basketball was over). So, like I said, it was just a challenge for me.’’

Though his N.C. State team struggled most of the season, Smith made the best of the situation by excelling in a variety of ways. His free throw rate (48.6 percent) and his percentage of shots at the rim (37.1) remained high because of his blinding quickness and fearlessness. Smith also shot the ball well from 3-point range – something the Magic analyzed on Monday.

``I think a lot of people want to see me shoot the ball because at N.C. State I was more so of a slasher,’’ said Smith, a 35.9 percent 3-point shooter last season. ``They want to see me get a lot of shots up and see me shoot while I’m fatigued. That’s what most of the workout consisted of today.’’

Unlike Ball at UCLA and Fox at Kentucky, Smith wasn’t surrounded by high school All-Americans and NBA-bound talent. Teammate Omer Yurtseven is the only other N.C. State player listed in the Draft Express’ list of Top 100 prospects available for this year’s draft. He said it’s not his job to respond to the critics who doubt his abilities because of N.C. State’s struggles last season; instead, he feels NBA talent evaluators will judge him on the way he persevered through a challenging season.

``That’s easy, I just don’t (respond),’’ Smith said to his critics. ``Everybody is going to talk – positive or negative. But it’s all God’s plan and I just act accordingly.’’

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Dennis Smith Jr. Works Out For Magic

ORLANDO – His NBA career about to come full circle, Orlando Magic interim General Manager Matt Lloyd will head to Chicago this week and try to put into action the talent-evaluation skills taught to him by a couple of Windy City basketball legends.

Hall of Fame GM Jerry Krause – the architect of the Bulls teams that won six NBA titles in an eight-year span from 1991 to 1998 – taught Lloyd many of the things to look for and the tricks of evaluating college and international talent. Later, John Paxson – a three-time champion as a player with the Bulls and a GM for six seasons – mentored Lloyd in how to meld personalities and be a leader of men when in a management position.

Those skills have come in handy over the past month as Lloyd has been running the Magic’s offseason review and its preparation for the June 22 NBA Draft. Lloyd, 44, was named interim GM following the firings of GM Rob Hennigan and assistant GM Scott Perry back on April 13.

The NBA Draft Combine starts on Tuesday in Chicago – close to the suburban area where Lloyd grew up and later worked for the Bulls for 13 years. Lloyd, an assistant GM for the Magic since August of 2012, figures his nights on the road this year were ``in triple digits’’ after he scouted ``75-to-80 games,’’ but the Draft Combine will give him the first chance to talk to prospective players to learn more about their personalities and preferences.

The Magic could potentially have as many four of the first 35 draft picks, so Lloyd has been working around the clock in recent weeks to make sure the Magic are fully prepared heading into Chicago this week.

``Our plan has been to attack it together and figure out what ways to go with free agency, the trade market and going into the draft. We want to head into the combine in Chicago with a unified front on how we’re going to attack everything,’’ Lloyd said, referring to working with head coach Frank Vogel and the team’s assistant coaches, scouts and front-office personnel. ``We have this great opportunity with the draft and we’re in a position we didn’t expect to be in (drafting in the top five). The draft is much deeper this year from our analysis. We have two top-25 picks and the possibility of having four in the top-35. That gives us a lot of ammo to use around draft time. Right now, we’re just still in the information-gathering phase.’’

Lloyd, an engaging type with a self-deprecating sense of humor, tells a funny story about how he learned he’d become the Magic’s interim GM. The day after the season ended – one in which the Magic went a disappointing 29-53 and missed the playoffs for a fifth consecutive season – Lloyd was in Virginia scouting at the Portsmith Invitational. He looked down at his ringing cell phone and the caller ID told him that it was Magic CEO Alex Martins on the other end. Immediately, Lloyd thought he was being fired. After being informed that Hennigan and Perry were being dismissed, Lloyd got word that he was the choice to be the interim GM.

Silence initially filled the air as Lloyd processed going from what he thought would be the unemployment line to getting the opportunity of a lifetime as a GM.

Though initially stunned, Lloyd was ready for the promotion because of the years of tireless work that he had put in while working in Chicago in Orlando. Further proof of his readiness for the job and the respect that he commands came when Martins proclaimed that Lloyd would be a candidate for the long-term GM position with the Magic.

Orlando is confident that Lloyd is ready for a bigger role because of the many things that he culled from Krause and Paxson while working in Chicago. Undoubtedly, both will be on Lloyd’s mind this week while he’s in Chicago sifting through players and looking for the right fit for the Magic.

``I was really lucky in Chicago to have two mentors and mentors in very different ways,’’ Lloyd said. ``Jerry Krause was really instrumental in teaching me how to scout. From the outside looking in – and I’ve experienced this with my friends and associates – they think (scouting) is something that anyone can do, but there’s an art to it and a science to it. Melding the two together is really challenging in the NBA.

``From a leadership perspective and a management perspective, John Paxson was instrumental also for me,’’ Lloyd continued. ``Growing up in Chicago in the 90s, I probably saw bits and pieces of every single game that he ever played with the Bulls. … (Paxson) taught me a lot about leadership and seeing the game from the perspective of intangibles and how those intangibles play out every single night. So, my development as an executive was through a lot of observation, through a lot of reading and studying and now I’m getting this window to attempt to put all of that together and execute.’’

To execute in a manner that most greatly benefits the Magic, Lloyd said he must keep his focus on doing the job of a GM instead of landing the GM gig full-time. Lloyd’s interview, he figures, will play out with how he conducts himself while preparing the Magic for the NBA Draft, the July free-agency period and the many trade proposals that could cross his desk in the coming weeks. If he’s spending too much time angling for the full-time job, it takes away energy from what he’s facing now, he said.

``I’ve approached it as I’m in the job and I’ve got to do the job while I have the job,’’ Lloyd said with conviction. ``But if I’m preparing to get the job then I’m not doing the job. There’s a little bit of a conundrum. But I feel really lucky to be in this position. The faith that they have put in me is great.’’

Lloyd knows that to make the Magic great again they need to come out of the draft and free agency with a host of players ready to contribute – both now and in the future. Lloyd has been a part of the Magic’s last four drafts – ones where they picked Victor Oladipo, Aaron Gordon, Dario Saric (traded for Elfrid Payton on draft night), Mario Hezonja and Domantas Sabonis (traded as part of Serge Ibaka deal) in the first round and Romero Osby, Tyler Harvey and Stephen Zimmerman in the second round. Oladipo was shipped to Oklahoma City last June, while the Magic are still waiting for Gordon, Payton and Hezonja to reach their full potential. As for the second-rounders, Zimmerman is the only one still on the roster and he spent most of his first season as a pro in the NBA D-League.

Lloyd is aware that the Magic must do a better job of drafting and developing young players in the years ahead. Looking back, he said, is only counterproductive when there is so much work to do in the days, weeks and months ahead – starting with this week’s Draft Combine in Chicago.

``It’s very simple to go back and do the `Monday Morning Quarterbacking’ of the draft. We made very informed decisions in each of the four drafts that I’ve been here,’’ Lloyd said. ``The four drafts that we’ve had we made very detailed and informed decisions. We tried to take the best opportunity that was remaining on the board at the time. I believe that some of the players that we picked in those drafts still have growth opportunity and they’re not finished products by any stretch of the imagination.

``This desire for instant return on player acquisitions across sports is rampant and understandable, but the we’re still in the beginning stages of the growth arc of the players that we’re drafted,’’ Lloyd continued. ``They’re starting to enter their prime years in the NBA now and we’re going to have the chance to see a major leap from them. Does that mean they’re all going to be perennial all-stars? Maybe, but maybe not.

``So much of it goes into having consistency with the coaching staff – something that we’re going to experience for the first time with all these young players,’’ Lloyd added. ``They’re going to come into training camp knowing the language that these coaches speak. That’s going to be in our favor, too. So I like where those players are headed in terms of reaching their full potential with us.’’

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NBA Draft Combine Will Help Magic Further Assess Prospects

ORLANDO – Orlando Magic coach Frank Vogel is hopeful that continuity – something many of the team’s players have not had in the past three years – will be beneficial going forward as the franchise looks to end their five-year playoff drought.

For a fifth consecutive season, the Magic are being forced to watch the NBA playoffs instead of participate in them. That happened because the team fell well short of expectations and ended up just 29-53 this past season.

Major changes could come – as evidenced by the recent firings of GM Rob Hennigan and Assistant GM Scott Perry – following a season worth of struggles. Still, there were plenty of positives to come out of the season considering the major strides made by some of Orlando’s key players.

Vogel, who recently completed his first season with the Magic, feels the Magic aren’t as far away from becoming a playoff team as some might think following a difficult season. He is excited that much of the Magic’s core is signed through next season and should return barring some major personnel moves in the offseason. And, after the franchise has gone through plenty of coaching turmoil in recent years, Vogel will be back to bring some much-needed continuity to the sidelines for the Magic.

Orlando has plenty of avenues with which to upgrade its roster this offseason. The Magic possess two first-round picks and they could have as many as four of the top 34 picks in the draft. They will find out the position of their top selection in the May 16 NBA Draft Lottery.

The actual NBA Draft is slated for June 22. Free agency, where the Magic figure to have a much as $15 million to spend, opens on July 1.

Before looking ahead too much, OrlandoMagic.com will look back at the regular season that just ended. We’ll break down what went right and what went wrong with many of the Magic’s key players over the next few weeks. Without further ado, here is today’s player analysis:

PLAYER: Nikola VucevicPOSITION: CenterNBA SEASONS: 6AGE: 262016-17 SEASON STATS: 75 games (55 starts), 14.6 ppg., 10.4 rpg., 2.8 apg., 1.01 spg., 1.0 bpg., 46.8 percent FG, 30.7 percent 3FG, 66.9 percent FT.CAREER NBA STATS: 399 games (338 starts), 14.6 ppg., 9.9 rpg., 2.0 apg., 0.8 spg., 0.9 bpg., 50.2 FG percent, 29.7 3FG percent, 71.9 FT percent.2016-17 SEASON HIGHS: 30 points, Jan. 13 at Portland; 19 rebounds, Feb. 7 at Houston; eight assists, March 22 vs. Charlotte; three steals, seven times, most recently April 8 vs. Indiana; four blocks, Jan. 29 at Toronto; 40 minutes, Dec. 20 at Miami.

WHAT WENT RIGHT: Vucevic had a down season as a scorer, but he turned his focus to other things and did them well. He had career highs in 3-pointers made (23), assists (208) and steals (76) and he had the second-most blocked shots (74) in his career. He was moved into a reserve role for 20 games as the Magic tried starting Bismack Biyombo alongside of Serge Ibaka, and Vucevic handled it like a true professional. He averaged 14.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.2 blocks in 20 games off the bench. On the season, Vucevic led the Magic in scoring 19 times, in rebounding 45 times and in assists 10 times. On April 10, Vucevic – Orlando’s leader in rebounding each of the past five seasons – passed Shaquille O’Neal to become second in Magic history in rebounding with 3,691 boards. Also, Vogel said that Vucevic proved himself to be a much better defender than he initially envisioned and he thinks the center is still a piece in the middle that the squad can build around.

WHAT WENT WRONG: Vucevic didn’t handle the rotation of Ibaka, Biyombo and himself well at all early in the season. He didn’t get the ball nearly as much and didn’t have the offensive freedom that he enjoyed in the past, and it torpedoed much of his rhythm and effectiveness on the offensive end. His 14.6-point scoring average was the lowest since 2012-13 – his first season in Orlando. His shooting percentage (46.8 percent) was the lowest since his rookie season as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers. Vucevic made (23) and attempted (75) far more 3-pointers than at any point in his career, but his lack of accuracy (30.7 percent) damaged his effectiveness as a go-to scorer for the Magic. Admittedly, Vucevic didn’t handle the frustration of losing well this season and he hopes to return next season as a different player more intent on being a leader.

FUTURE ROLE WITH MAGIC: Vucevic is the longest-tenured player on the Magic and he has high hopes that his time with the Magic will continue long into the future. Vucevic desperately wants to see the Magic win and get to the playoffs – especially after enduring the struggles of the past five seasons. But the reality of the situation is that the franchise might need to move the big man this offseason to shake up the core of the team. Two areas where Vucevic struggles – being a physical presence at the rim and scoring from the low block – are things that the big man struggles to do consistently. However, Vucevic’s shooting ability and his desire to become a better 3-point shooter could make him a more dangerous weapon going forward. Vucevic’s contract makes him a tremendous value relative to his production levels and his desire to win is strong, so the Magic certainly have plenty of reasons to stick with the 7-footer. Only time will tell now as to whether Orlando’s next GM wants to build around Vucevic or trade him elsewhere.

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2016-17 Magic Player Review: Nikola Vucevic

Dan Savage

ORLANDO – Matt Lloyd doesn’t like keeping count of the number of days that he spent on the road or the dozens upon dozens of college and international games he watched in person because it reminds him of how much he was away from his family this past basketball season.

However, Lloyd knows that all the tireless work put in from October to April scouring the globe and the college basketball landscape for talent helps him better prepare the Orlando Magic for the June 22 NBA Draft. And that work should somewhat lighten the load for Lloyd, who is shouldering the added responsibility of being the Magic’s interim GM as the franchise prepares for next week’s NBA Pre-Draft Camp in Chicago.

While one might think that the Magic are operating at a personnel disadvantage following the April 13 firings of GM Rob Hennigan and Assistant GM Scott Perry, Lloyd has helped the franchise stay on track as it simultaneously prepares for the NBA Draft, the July 1-6 free-agent courting period and any opportunities that might arise via trades. Lloyd, who has worked in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and Magic since 1994, is doing everything in his power to keep the Magic’s focus on improving the roster this offseason.

``The preparation for the draft has been my primary responsibility in the past and I’m still taking that role on. So I have a little bit of an advantage and I’m not coming into this blind in terms of what players are available and how I assess their strengths and weaknesses. So that work has already been done,’’ said Lloyd, who has worked as an Assistant GM for the Magic for the past five seasons. ``I have a good sense of the draft and where it falls. I’ve been really relying on our staff to replicate that free agency and trade analysis process.

``I think time management has been the biggest difference because there’s a lot more going on with phone calls,’’ continued Lloyd, referring to talks with players, agents, scouts and other GMs. ``Previously, I could focus simply on player evaluation. That was an area where I could watch a lot of film, but now there’s a lot more going on. Right now, wearing the two hats with the GM job and my previous job, it’s been challenging, but it’s fun and I’m so grateful for the opportunity.’’

Magic CEO Alex Martins has said that Lloyd will be a candidate for the team’s full-time GM, in part, because of his gifts as a communicator, a team-builder and a talent evaluator. Lloyd learned the tricks of the trade under the mentorships of Hall of Famer Jerry Krause and John Paxson and he was hand-picked to come to Orlando by Hennigan because of his work ethic and eye for talent.

The Magic have started the process of sifting through candidates to become the team’s next GM and/or President of Basketball Operations, and Lloyd is expected to soon get his shot at pitching himself for the full-time gig. Martins warned recently that the process could stretch into late June because the Magic intend to pursue some potential candidates whose teams go deep into the NBA playoffs.

While the Magic hope to have a GM firmly in place prior to the NBA Draft, it speaks volumes about the team’s confidence in Lloyd that it has no desire to rush the hiring process. Lloyd admitted that it’s even somewhat counterproductive for him to be thinking about landing the full-time GM job when he’s training his focus on doing that job presently in front of him.

``I’ve approached it as I’m in the job and I’ve got to do the job while I have the job,’’ Lloyd said with a chuckle. ``But if I’m preparing to get the job then I’m not doing the job. There’s a little bit of a conundrum there.

``But I feel really lucky to be in this position,’’ he added. ``The faith that the Magic have put in me is great. Again, I’m more focused on doing the job than trying to get the job. That means getting a plan in place here for the next two months and then executing the plan by synthesizing all the information that we’ve gotten heading into the draft through our scouting.’’

Lloyd has led that scouting and draft prep for the past four NBA Drafts, processes that have seen the Magic select Victor Oladipo (2013 No. 2 pick), Aaron Gordon (2014 No. 4 pick), Elfrid Payton (2014, No. 10 pick, acquired via trade) and Mario Hezonja (2015 No. 5 pick) with first-round selections. Lloyd is confident that the Magic can dramatically upgrade a roster that recently completed a disappointing 29-53 season with the pick ammunition that the franchise could have on draft night.

The Magic will enter the May 16 NBA Draft Lottery with the fifth-best odds at landing the No. 1 pick. Orlando is guaranteed the No. 25 pick as compensation for trading Serge Ibaka to Toronto for Terrence Ross and the Raptors’ first-round selection. In addition, the Magic own their second-round selection (35th pick) and they could get the second-round selection of the Los Angeles Lakers (33rd pick) if L.A. stays in the top three of the first round following the lottery. If the Lakers fall out of the top three in this year’s draft, that selection will go to the Philadelphia 76ers and L.A.’s 2019 first-round pick goes to the Magic.

Potentially the Magic could have as many as four of the first 35 picks in a draft many experts – Lloyd included – believes is loaded with difference-making talent. Those picks could be used to snag young college or international talent or packaged in a trade for veteran help, Lloyd said.

``We look at it as an opportunity because the draft is rich this year,’’ Lloyd said. ``The opportunity could exist where we take some swings for the fences or maybe there are some players that are ready to play right away. Previously, maybe the scouting parlance had players (categorized as) high-ceiling players or low-ceiling players, but it’s the low-ceiling players who have lately stepped in and had an instant return on where they were picked. So we’ve got a lot of options with that currency of draft picks. I don’t know if that has been looked at properly, because we have a major amount of picks into No. 35 and we can really do some stuff with that.’’

Lloyd said that he will lean heavily on the advice of Magic head coach Frank Vogel and the coaching staff because that group most closely knows the talent already on hand and has had big success at the NBA level in the past. Lloyd said he sees himself and Vogel as being ``kindred spirits’’ because like himself the head coach is an ``enthusiastically positive person.’’ He greatly admired how Vogel handled himself all throughout a challenging season that fell well below the expectations of reaching the playoffs.

Lloyd has also greatly admired the help and words of encouragement that he’s gotten of late from the deposed Hennigan and Perry. Though both were dismissed following the worst five-year stretch in Magic history – one where Orlando missed the playoffs each season – they have tried to help Lloyd’s transition to interim GM be a smooth one by offering up advice.

Clearly, there’s still a high level of respect there for Lloyd’s talent and work ethic. For the record, Lloyd figures he was on the road ``triple digits’’ in terms of the number of nights travelled this past season and he scouted ``roughly 75-to-80 games in person’’ – something that his wife, Cortney, understands since her father was once a coach.

Hennigan and Perry are supportive too, albeit from afar.

``The emotional part (of Hennigan’s and Perry’s firings) was difficult to rectify, but every day has been better and every day I’ve been more comfortable in the management piece of this while not forgetting what they meant to me and how much they continue to be,’’ Lloyd said. ``They’ve both been very encouraging to me and have told me to knock this thing out of the park while I have it. As I’ve done the past five years, I’m just taking their advice and trying to do the best that I can every day.’’

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Matt Lloyd Excited About Opportunity Ahead

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