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Weltman Impressed by Depth of Talent in This Year's Draft

Josh Cohen
Digital News Manager

ORLANDO – An NBA talent evaluator for nearly three decades, Jeff Weltman and his scouting brethren have anxiously awaited this NBA Draft class for years, projecting it to be one loaded with dynamic difference-makers and top-tier talent.

Now that Weltman, the Orlando Magic’s President of Basketball Operations, has had months to analyze and get to know many of the best players available in Thursday’s NBA Draft, he feels even stronger about the depth of talent there for the taking.

``This is a draft that a lot of the guys whose business it is to know these kids at their earliest ages have been flagging for a while, and we felt that way throughout the season,’’ said Weltman, who is on the precipice of conducting his second draft with the Magic. ``As we’ve had these guys in for workouts, gotten to know them and gotten a feel for them, I feel more strongly than ever that this will be a deep draft and that we will get a quality player.’’

Weltman and the Magic head into Thursday night’s draft proceedings armed with the No. 6 pick of the first round and Nos. 35 and 41 in the second round. That, of course, is all subject to change as there could be lots of movement because of teams’ desires to move up (or down) to nab premier talent.

Weltman admitted that his franchise – which recently hired Steve Clifford as its new head coach – has been working the phones to gauge what deals might be available and which teams are potentially looking to move up or down. To even get in the conversation of moving up, the Magic almost certainly would have to surrender a current member of their core and their No. 6 pick – and that still might not be enough considering the high price tag on top-five picks in the days before the draft.

``We’re having discussions above us and below us,’’ said Weltman, who pointed out that the Magic’s front office worked evaluating talent throughout last weekend save for a couple of hours on Father’s Day. ``It’s our job to explore every possible option and get to know the draft as well as we possibly can. The draft isn’t just about the draft; it’s about other roster moves that you could potentially look at, as well (with trades). There’s not a team we don’t talk to, not a stone we don’t turn over in an effort to find out what’s available.

``(On Monday) or maybe (Tuesday), we’ll start to understand if (trade) conversations are real or just chatter,’’ he added. ``That’s the way these things generally happen. Then, we’ll know Thursday if they are for real or not.’’

Phoenix (No. 1) and Sacramento (No. 2) own the top two picks, and the consensus among talent evaluators seems to be that they will select Arizona center DeAndre Ayton or European playmaker Luka Doncic. After that, debate rages over whether Atlanta (No. 3), Memphis (No. 4) and Dallas (No. 5) will pick Michigan State center Jaren Jackson Jr., Duke forward Marvin Bagley III, Texas center Mo Bamba or Missouri forward Michael Porter. One of those players should also be available to Orlando, but it could instead opt instead for Oklahoma point guard Trae Young or Duke power forward Wendell Carter Jr.

The Magic, 25-57 this past season and out of the playoffs for a sixth consecutive year, are in dire need for a playmaking point guard and could opt for Young, the first player in history to lead the NCAAs in scoring (27.4 ppg.) and assists (8.7 apg.) in the same season. Orlando, which dealt point guard Elfrid Payton in February and finished the season with veterans D.J. Augustin and Shelvin Mack running the team, interviewed Young in Chicago in late May and worked him out in Orlando earlier this month.

On the other hand, the Magic could instead opt for Bamba, who blocked 3.7 shots a game in college and whose 7-foot-10 wingspan was the most expansive ever measured at the NBA Draft Combine. Or Jackson Jr., the youngest player available in the draft who incredibly swatted 3.0 shots a game at Michigan State and could turn out to be the most complete big man available. Or Porter, the nation’s top high school player in 2017 (36.2 ppg. and 13.6 rpg.), but someone whose stock has been put into question because of a back injury suffered in his first collegiate game.

Plenty of choices, indeed, for the Magic. That’s a good thing, Weltman said, considering the many needs that his team has.

``Obviously, where we’re picking in this draft is indicative that we have a lot of needs, so we have to access which players can address the most needs or the most crucial needs,’’ Weltman said. ``At the end of the day, you try and (determine) what deals could be available – up or down and then you just rank the players. You can guess all you want and gather all the intel you want on what’s going on in front of you, but at the end of the day, the draft picks will get called off and we’ll find out (which player is available) as (the general public) does. … That’s what we go through now with the long nights, rankings and re-rankings and how does that deal fit in if this ranking is there? It doesn’t end; it just stops when the draft happens.’’

Another question for the Magic is whether they opt for a player who can immediately help them out or one who is more of a long-term project but might be the better player years down the line. Weltman said last year’s selection of the Jonathan Isaac at No. 6 – a lanky forward who still needs to develop his game and his body – might lend some insight into where the franchise stands on that debate.

``I think we’ve been pretty consistent about that – we’re going to get it right, we’re not going to get it fast,’’ Weltman said pointedly. ``Jonathan Isaac served as a good example of a kid who probably less physically equipped than most at that part of the draft to come in and have an (immediate) impact in the NBA. We’re not afraid of investing time and patience if we believe that it’s the right player and the right person.’’

Weltman said the Magic’s interviews in Orlando with roughly three-dozen players convinced him that the talent base will run deep in this draft. He knows that it is critical for the rebuilding Magic to find a player who can eventually be a foundational building block for the franchise, and he is certain he and GM John Hammond will nab just the right fit for the franchise.

``This is hiring somebody. This is bringing somebody into your family, so it’s everything,’’ Weltman said. ``Who is this person. There’s no right or wrong answer or one quality that outweighs another, but who is this person and how does he fit into what we’re trying to build and with our existing other people?

``The draft is having all of these levers and all these buttons, but you’ll never get the perfect solution,’’ he added. ``With the weaknesses that any player presents, (you ask), `How far can we help him to get better? With the strengths that he has how much does he use those strengths? How much growth is there? How much do we believe in him? Where’s the league going? There is so much that we factor in. … Look, we need length, we need IQ, we need shooting, we need positional size, we need everything. So, who is going to help us the most? These are all parts of the conversation.’’

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