Despite being healthy, Kyle O’Quinn, who’ll be a restricted free agent this summer, has played only about six minutes combined in just two games for the Magic since the All-Star break and the big man said the transition to less playing time has been hard, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel writes. “It’s tough,” O’Quinn said. “But, you know, the team is making strides. I’m still a part of the team. To see the team grow, I’m still a part of that. So it feels somewhat good still.” The second-round pick out of Norfolk State played his best basketball this season in January when he averaged 8.6 PPG while getting consistent minutes.
Here’s more from the Southeast Division:
- The three-year, $27MM deal Lance Stephenson signed with the Hornets over the summer no longer looks like the steal it originally was thought to be and the guard is actually hurting the team’s playoff chances, Chris Mannix of SI.com writes. The Hornets are more than seven points per game worse when Stephenson is on the floor, points out Mannix, who outlined why the team is being hindered by the guard. Charlotte entered action Friday clinging to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
- Goran Dragic told reporters, including Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post (on Twitter), that he has no issue with the Heat sending his brother Zoran Dragic to their D-League affiliate. The elder Dragic feels that it’ll be good for Zoran to get some additional playing time in Sioux Falls.
- Cameron Schott of RealGM gave a scouting report on Jarell Eddie, who recently inked a 10-day deal with the Hawks after impressing in the D-League. Eddie, he believes, can be a solid contributor as a shooter off the bench for Atlanta.
Zach Links contributed to this post