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Draft Notes: Second Round, Bolmaro, Wizards, Okoro

August 17th, 2020 at 11:44am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA previously announced slight changes to its 2020 lottery, with the eight teams left out of the summer restart claiming the top eight spots in the lottery standings based on their records as of March 11 — even if they didn’t have the league’s eight worst records by the time the summer’s seeding games ended this month.

According to Jeremy Woo of SI.com (Twitter link), the league is also tweaking the way the second-round order is determined this season, with picks 31 through 44 assigned to the lottery teams based on their March 11 winning percentages and the remaining picks assigned to the playoff clubs based on their end-of-season records.

As Woo notes (via Twitter), winning percentage would normally dictate the second-round order regardless of whether or not a team made the playoffs. For example, the Magic – who made the playoffs despite finishing behind the Grizzlies and Suns in the overall NBA standings – will get the No. 45 pick this year rather than the No. 43 pick they’d typically receive.

We’ll be publishing the full pre-lottery 2020 draft order this week after the NBA announces its tiebreaker results.

Here’s more on the 2020 NBA draft:

Leandro Bolmaro, a guard/forward from Argentina, remains in the 2020 draft pool as an early entrant and ranks 23rd overall on ESPN’s big board. He recently agreed to a new three-year contract with Barcelona, according to the team, but ESPN’s Jonathan Givony suggests (via Twitter) that the deal has NBA outs with an affordable buyout number. The flexibility to potentially stash Bolmaro overseas after drafting him could appeal to some NBA teams, Givony notes.
If the Wizards get lucky and win the 2020 draft lottery, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington believes their choice would come down to Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman. As Hughes observes, Edwards would fit well on the wing alongside Washington’s star guards, while Wiseman’s strengths – rim protecting and rebounding – match the team’s biggest weaknesses.
Sam Vecenie of The Athletic polled a series of college coaches about Isaac Okoro‘s NBA upside and received mixed reviews on whether the Auburn forward will be a quality top-five pick. One coach said that Okoro “might have been my favorite guy in the SEC in terms of feeling most confident on his projection,” while another said he views Alabama’s Kira Lewis as a better draft prospect.

Southeast Notes: Ross, Heat, Monk, Hornets

August 16th, 2020 at 3:33pm CST by JD Shaw

Magic guard Terrence Ross has recovered from a stomach ailment and is now back with the team for the postseason, Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel writes. Ross, who left the Orlando campus for medical care last week, described his experience in great detail, explaining what caused the issue in the first place.

“Sometimes your stomach creates too much stomach acid when you eat and it can get into your esophagus,” he said.

Ross finished eating in the team room at roughly 8:30 pm before ordering more food just 90 minutes later, according to Parry. He went to bed around 10:40 and began to experience sharp pains shortly after that.

“I started feeling like … almost like really, really, really intense like heartburn, almost. But then I realized it was more than that,” Ross said. “I didn’t even know what it was at the time but it was debilitating. It hurt. I was hunched over the floor for like an hour in the fetal position because of just whatever I wanted to do, everything that I was doing was just amplified and getting worse. So I called the team doctor and they took it from there.”

The Magic are set to open their first-round playoff series against the Bucks on Tuesday with Ross in the rotation. He has averaged 14.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 27.4 minutes per game off the bench this season, shooting 40% from the field and 35% from downtown.

Here’s more from the Southeast Division today:

Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel explores whether the Heat are truly ready for the playoffs in his latest “Ask Ira” mailbag. Head coach Erik Spoelstra has opted to change his rotation in Orlando, starting forward Jae Crowder in place of Meyers Leonard in order to play smaller and quicker.
Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer examines whether Malik Monk could make a similar leap with the Hornets that Devonte’ Graham did. Charlotte drafted Monk with the No. 11 pick in 2017, with Monk averaging a career-high 10.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per contest this season.
Bonnell also examined a perk the Hornets got from the Orlando restart in a separate story for the Charlotte Observer, securing a 2020 second-round draft pick from the Celtics. Charlotte finished with the tenth-best record in the Eastern Conference at 23-42 this season.

COVID-19 Notes: Nurkic, Testing, Roster Moves, Bamba

August 16th, 2020 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic turned in one of the best games of his career Saturday, shortly after learning that his grandmother had died of COVID-19, writes Jason Owens of Yahoo Sports. Nurkic helped Portland claim the eighth seed in the West with 22 points, 21 rebounds, and six assists in a win over Memphis, but admitted he was almost too devastated to take the court.

“I didn’t want to play. She made me play,” Nurkic said afterward. “… I’m glad we won and are in the playoffs. That’s what we came for.”

Nurkic briefly considered leaving the Disney World campus after his grandmother was diagnosed in late July. He has been one of the keys to the resurgent Blazers after being sidelined for more than a year with a compound fracture in his left leg.

There’s more coronavirus-related news:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency approval to a saliva-based test for COVID-19 that was funded by the NBA and its players union, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN. Developed at Yale University, the test, called SalivaDirect, is intended for public screening. It was given to some NBA players and staff members in Orlando, and the results nearly matched the nasal swab test that is now is widespread use. “(The Yale test) loses a little bit of sensitivity, but what we gain is speed and that it should be up to 10 times cheaper,” said Nathan Grubaugh, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Yale.
With the seeding games over, the NBA’s rules for roster moves have changed, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN. The 16 teams remaining in Orlando can only replace players who test positive for the virus, and the new player can’t have more than three years of NBA experience. Prior to Saturday, teams were still permitted to replace players who decided to opt out.
Mohamed Bamba and the Magic hope further medical testing will determine why he had so much physical difficulty after contracting the coronavirus, writes Iliana Limon Romero of The Orlando Sentinel. Bamba felt strong when he arrived at Disney World, but he was never able to fully get back into game shape. He left the campus Friday and is done for the season. “Mo went home and he’s going to have tests so that we can find out what the issues are for sure,” coach Steve Clifford explained. “He had been working hard and he just didn’t feel good. So he wasn’t seeing progress in his conditioning level, so this is the smart thing to do and to find out for sure to find out why he was having the problems he was having.”

Mo Bamba Leaves NBA Campus, Out For Season

August 14th, 2020 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Magic center Mohamed Bamba has left the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus, the team said today (Twitter link). According to the Magic, Bamba is undergoing a “comprehensive post-coronavirus evaluation” on the advice of team doctors and performance staffers.

Bamba has been ruled out for the rest of the season, per the Magic.

Josh Robbins of The Athletic reported last week that Bamba contracted COVID-19 in June and that his recovery from the virus had been a slow process. The illness led to fatigue and muscle soreness and temporarily removed Bamba’s senses of smell and taste, according to Robbins. He has barely played at all this summer due to conditioning issues, last appearing in a game on August 2.

The former No. 6 overall pick spoke last week about wanting to continue working to get back to 100% and being ready to play when called upon. However, it appears the Magic determined that it’s in Bamba’s best interest to shut things down for the 2019/20 season and focus on getting healthy for next year.

Bamba, 22, appeared in 62 games during his second NBA season, averaging 5.4 PPG and 4.9 RPG in 14.2 minutes per contest as a backup behind starting center Nikola Vucevic. He’s under contract for $5.97MM next season, with a $7.57MM team option for 2021/22.

Bamba is the second Magic player who has been ruled out for the season since the restart began, as Jonathan Isaac tore his ACL earlier this month. The club has also been missing Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Michael Carter-Williams (foot), who was said to be in a walking boot on Thursday. Additionally, Al-Farouq Aminu didn’t travel to Disney World with the team as he continues to recover from knee surgery.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Seven Of Eight First-Round Playoff Matchups Set

August 13th, 2020 at 6:59am CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 13: Following wins by the Thunder and Clippers on Wednesday night, three Western Conference first-round matchups have now been set, with only the Lakers still awaiting their opponent. Those first-round series are as follows:

Los Angeles Lakers (1) vs. Play-in winner (8)
Los Angeles Clippers (2) vs. Dallas Mavericks (7)
Denver Nuggets (3) vs. Utah Jazz (6)
Oklahoma City Thunder (4/5) vs. Houston Rockets (4/5)

We’ll know by the end of Thursday which two teams out of the Trail Blazers, Grizzlies, Suns, and Spurs will be participating in the play-in tournament in the West, but it may be Sunday before the Lakers know their first-round opponent.

AUGUST 12: As a result of the Pacers’ 108-104 win over Houston this afternoon, the four Eastern Conference matchups for the first round of the postseason have been set. They are as follows:

Milwaukee Bucks (1) vs. Orlando Magic (8)
Toronto Raptors (2) vs. Brooklyn Nets (7)
Boston Celtics (3) vs. Philadelphia 76ers (6)
Miami Heat (4/5) vs. Indiana Pacers (4/5)

Typically, the Heat and Pacers would be continuing to fight for home court advantage in their series, but the unusual nature of this season means claiming the No. 4 seed instead of No. 5 won’t make much of a difference.

Despite the fact that several teams were within two or three games of one another in the standings when the restart began – or were even tied, like the Pacers and Sixers – the first-round matchups in the East look exactly the same as they did when the season was suspended on March 11.

Over in the West, a small number of teams – including the No. 1 Lakers – are locked into their playoff spots, but most matchups remain up in the air. For now, the most likely pairings are Lakers/play-in winner, Clippers/Mavericks, Nuggets/Jazz, and Rockets/Thunder, but one or more of those could change by Friday.

Terrence Ross Returns To NBA Campus

August 11th, 2020 at 10:30am CST by Luke Adams

Magic sharpshooter Terrence Ross wasn’t away from the NBA’s campus at Walt Disney World for long. After announcing on Monday that Ross had left to address a medical matter unrelated to COVID-19, the Magic said this morning (via Twitter) that he has returned.

Ross’ medical tests came back negative and he has begun his quarantine period, according to the team. Typically, a player who leaves the NBA’s campus for personal reasons must quarantine for at least four days upon returning. However, the league sent out a memo in July informing teams that players wouldn’t necessarily have to quarantine for that long if they leave the bubble for local medical treatment with league approval.

The Magic previously announced that Ross would be out for Tuesday’s game against Brooklyn, but if we assume his quarantine period will be brief, he could be back in action on Thursday when Orlando faces New Orleans in the team’s final seeding game. Whether or not he plays this week, he definitely should be available for the start of the postseason on August 17.

Although he hasn’t started a game in 2019/20, Ross is the first man off the bench for the Magic, playing 27.4 minutes per contest. He has averaged 14.7 PPG on .403/.351/.853 shooting in 69 games this season, though those numbers are slightly down during the restart — 14.3 PPG on .362/.300/.913 shooting in six games this summer.

Terrence Ross Temporarily Leaves Campus For Medical Reasons

August 10th, 2020 at 1:27pm CST by Luke Adams

Magic wing Terrence Ross has temporarily left the NBA’s campus at Walt Disney World due to a personal medical matter that is unrelated to COVID-19, the team announced today (Twitter link). Ross’ medical issue requires him to undergo off-site tests, the club notes.

As a result of his departure from Disney World, Ross has been ruled out for Tuesday’s game against Brooklyn. His availability moving forward will depend on his test results and the NBA’s quarantine protocols, according to the Magic.

Typically, a player who leaves the NBA’s campus for personal reasons is subject to a quarantine period of at least four days upon returning. However, the league sent out a memo in July informing teams that players wouldn’t necessarily have to quarantine for that long if they leave the bubble for local medical treatment with league approval.

The Magic have had some bad luck this summer, having lost forward Jonathan Isaac to a torn ACL, while other key contributors like Aaron Gordon and Michael Carter-Williams have been sidelined with injuries of their own. The team is now locked into the No. 8 seed in the East, so the focus will be on getting as many players as possible healthy for the start of the postseason next week.

Magic Can Apply For Disabled Player Exception In October

August 9th, 2020 at 3:34pm CST by JD Shaw

The Magic can apply for a Disabled Player Exception worth $3.78MM starting in October, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). Orlando lost forward Jonathan Isaac for the season after he sustained a torn ACL and torn meniscus last week. The exception would allow the team to sign, acquire or claim a player on a one-year contract if Isaac is considered likely to miss all of next season.

Magic’s Isaac Undergoes Left Knee Surgery

August 7th, 2020 at 7:19pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Magic forward Jonathan Isaac underwent surgery on his left knee on Friday, according to a team press release (Twitter link). Isaac’s surgery was needed to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscal tear.

The team did not announce a timetable. His return to the court will depend on how he responds to treatment and rehab, according to the release.

Isaac suffered the first major injury during the league restart. He was driving to the basket early in the fourth quarter of Orlando’s win over the Kings on Sunday when his left knee buckled. He was eventually taken off the court on a wheelchair.

He was on the verge of a breakout 2019/20 season, having averaged career highs in PPG (11.9), RPG (6.8), BPG (2.3), and SPG (1.6). However, a severe left knee sprain and bone bruise sidelined him on January 1 and he didn’t play again until the seeding games in Orlando.

The team’s president of basketball operations, Jeff Weltman, insisted earlier this week the two injuries weren’t related. Isaac, 22, is still on his rookie contract and will make $7.36MM next season, though his ability to return at any point is obviously in doubt.

How Isaac's ACL Tear Will Affect His Future -- And Magic's

August 7th, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of Jonathan Isaac‘s season-ending ACL tear, Josh Robbins and John Hollinger of The Athletic examine how the injury will affect Isaac and the Magic going forward. Hollinger believes Isaac’s long-term All-Star potential still exists, but says the young forward now has a “longer, less certain pathway” to reaching that ceiling.