ORLANDO, Fla. -- From Penny Hardaway to Jameer Nelson to Elfrid Payton a year ago, the Orlando Magic have a history of not standing pat on the night of the NBA draft in order to improve themselves.
But they have been seldom mentioned in the past week among the reports of teams looking to move up or down by Thursday night. So it could well be that general manager Rob Hennigan will go with the Magic's scheduled pick at No. 5, just like he did in 2013 with Victor Oladipo at No. 2 and last year with Aaron Gordon at No. 4.
In contrast to those two drafts, Hennigan has not made himself available to reporters this week. Even if he did field questions, it's doubtful the plans of the Magic would have become less of a mystery, especially with the unpredictable Philadelphia 76ers and the desperate-to-be-relevant-again New York Knicks selecting in the two spots ahead of them.
Hennigan pulled off a trade with the Sixers on draft night a year ago, acquiring Payton -- the 10th player taken overall -- for the rights to forward Dario Saric, a future first-round pick and a future second-round pick. Payton went on to have a more productive rookie season than Gordon, playing in all 82 games and making 63 starts at point guard.
Payton, Gordon, Oladipo, Andrew Nicholson and Kyle O'Quinn have all come to the Magic through the draft since Hennigan was hired in June 2012. He also swung deals to acquire Nikola Vucevic and Tobias Harris, both of whom were taken in the middle of the first round in 2011.
"We believe that what we're doing, the way we're building, the pieces and the players that we're putting together will put us in a position to be competitive for a long time," Hennigan said in April after the Magic concluded its third consecutive season of more than 50 losses. "We certainly understand the frustration of the fans. We understand the sense of impatience. We are doing it a little differently this time around."
Scott Skiles, who was hired May 29 as their new head coach, inherits a team which had three players -- Vucevic, Oladipo and Harris -- average more than 17 points a game last season but ranked 25th defensively in points per 100 possessions.
Despite all of the build-up to the class of 2014, only three first-round picks averaged as many as 10 points a game -- Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Zach LaVine, with Wiggins and LaVine putting up those numbers for a 66-loss Minnesota Timberwolves team. So whomever Hennigan brings in is unlikely to make a noticeable impact on offense right away.
But the player perhaps mentioned most frequently in mock drafts as coming to the Magic is a forward from Europe compared to Pau Gasol and Dirk Nowitzki, both of whom became 20-point scorers by no later than their fifth seasons. For as much as Skiles wants a stronger defensive team, how do they weigh drafting according to need against the desire to add another offensive threat?
FIVE TO WATCH
PF Kristaps Porzingis, Baloncesta Sevilla (Spain), 7-0, 220 pounds -- The native of Latvia is regarded as the top player available at a position where Channing Frye, who turned 32 in May, was a disappointment in his first season with the Magic. Porzingis won't turn 20 until August, so for as intriguing of a prospect as he is, he's nowhere close to a finished product.
SG Mario Hezonja, FC Barcelona Basquet (Spain), 6-8, 200 pounds -- While the Magic are delighted to have Oladipo and Payton, both of them can struggle with their outside shooting. Hezonja doesn't lack for confidence from 3-point range and is regarded as the top European in more than two decades at either the shooting guard or small forward spot.
SG Justise Winslow, Duke, 6-7, 230 pounds -- A power forward on the Blue Devils' national championship team as a freshman, Winslow is more mature physically than many one-and-done players and is versatile enough to guard players at three positions. Wherever he winds up, he'll more likely become a lock-down defender before he develops an offensive game which doesn't rely on brute strength.
C Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky, 7-1, 240 pounds -- Only the Boston Celtics blocked fewer shots than the Magic last season, meaning Cauley-Stein could be the rim protector they've lacked since Dwight Howard left Orlando three years ago. The perception remains that he's a one-dimensional player whose intensity tends to waver, although he reportedly has shown a surprisingly soft shooting touch in workouts.
SF Stanley Johnson, Arizona, 6-7, 245 pounds -- Considered more likely to go to the Magic if they move down from the No. 5 spot, Johnson has the same sort of defensive versatility as Winslow with a better shooting touch from both 3-point range and the free-throw line. He has often been compared to Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs, who wasn't even a lottery pick.
BEST-CASE SCENARIO
The Sixers and the Knicks haven't done much right of late on or off the court. Hennigan and his staff are leaving nothing to chance, but it wouldn't be farfetched to see Porzingis fall to the Magic without the relinquishing of any future draft picks. Yes, the Magic once drafted Fran Vazquez and thought they could succeed where others had not with Darko Milicic, but Porzingis appears to be a totally different European big man.
You can follow Ken Hornack on Twitter @HornackFSFla or email him at khornack32176@gmail.com.
