Young Magic Tracker: Payton has work cut out to break Penny's assist record
With close to half of their roster born in 1992 or later, the Orlando Magic began the season as the NBA's fourth-youngest team and therefore need to figure out which players have a future with them. Every Thursday for the rest of the season, FOX Sports Florida's Ken Hornack takes a closer look at those players, measuring, highlighting and evaluating their progress.
EVAN FOURNIER (age 22, third NBA season, first with Magic)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 0.0 minutes (28.8), 0.0 points (11.9), 0.0 rebounds (2.6), 0.0 assists (2.1), 0.0 blocks (0.0), 0.0 steals (0.7), 0.0 FG% (43.7), 0.0 3PT% (37.4).
Advanced stats, season: 12.3 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 53.9 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 19.8 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Unchanged
Noted: Fournier has still not played since Feb. 25 because of a sore right hip which landed him and has kept him on the inactive list. The Magic's record without him over that stretch is 3-13. Despite his prolonged absence, the native of France still ranks second on the team in 3-point field goals made (80) and attempted (214). The Magic are only 20 of 77 from that distance in their last five games and will likely continue to struggle over their final seven games with Fournier unavailable and Channing Frye looking like the odd man out in interim head coach James Borrego's rotation of power forwards.
AARON GORDON (age 19, first season)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 12.8 minutes (15.1), 2.0 points (4.8), 2.5 rebounds (3.1), 1.5 assists (0.6), 0.0 blocks (0.4), 0.0 steals (0.3), 40.0 FG% (48.3), 0.0 3PT% (30.6).
Advanced stats, season: 12.1 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 56.3 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 15.9 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Down
Noted: Except for a four-minute stretch to begin the second quarter when the Magic were outscored 13-2, Gordon did not play at all Wednesday night against the San Antonio Spurs until after Dewayne Dedmon fouled out with 9:41 remaining. Compared to many of the lottery picks taken after him a year ago, including teammate Elfrid Payton, Gordon has put up numbers which have been underwhelming. He has been injury-free for the past month, but he has not played more than 20 minutes in any game during that time. On the bright side, a player who made only 42.2 percent of his free throws during his one year in college at Arizona went 10 of 10 from the line in March. "Our philosophy is you've got to earn minutes," Borrego said. "He's earned some minutes right now. We're playing him and hoping that he earns more."
MAURICE HARKLESS (age 21, third season)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 5.3 minutes (15.2), 0.0 points (3.7), 3.0 rebounds (2.5), 0.0 assists (0.6), 0.0 blocks (0.2), 0.0 steals (0.7), 0.0 FG% (39.5), 0.0 3PT% (18.9).
Advanced stats, season: 8.9 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 44.6 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 14.1 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Down
Noted: The first two players brought off the bench in the first quarter against the Spurs were Harkless and Kyle O'Quinn. The Magic went from leading 17-14 to trailing 23-19 by the end of the quarter, and Harkless never got back in the game during the final three quarters. Since a three-game stretch where he started in place of the injured Tobias Harris, Harkless has played a total of fewer than 11 minutes without scoring. He ranks 390th out of 485 players around the league in efficiency, and only three players -- Detroit's Spencer Dinwiddie, Denver's Gary Harris and Charlotte's Lance Stephenson -- have a poorer percentage from 3-point range than Harkless among anyone who had made at least 10 such shots this season.
TOBIAS HARRIS (age 22, second full season with Magic)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 38.0 minutes (34.8), 19.5 points (17.0), 6.0 rebounds (6.1), 1.0 assists (1.9), 0.5 blocks (0.5), 1.0 steals (1.0), 50.0 FG% (46.3), 16.7 3PT% (36.1).
Advanced stats, season: 16.5 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 54.7 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 22.5 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Unchanged
Noted: So much for the suggestion of shutting him down to avoid further injury to his left ankle. Harris has played at least 36 minutes in every game since his return toward the end of last month and was on the floor for the entire third quarter and most of the fourth quarter in the Magic's 103-91 loss to the Spurs. Since his acquisition in February 2013 from the Milwaukee Bucks, Harris has been part of a team which has lost a total of 134 games. Despite all those defeats, he's displaying far from a defeatist attitude. "We've just got to keep on plucking," he said. "There's only seven games left, but we've got to find a good rhythm out there." Harris has often been the beneficiary of the Magic's improved passing leading to dunks such as this. The Magic have a total of 55 assists in their last two games.
DEVYN MARBLE (age 22, first season)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 0.0 minutes (13.0), 0.0 points (2.3), 0.0 rebounds (1.9), 0.0 assists (1.1), 0.0 blocks (0.1), 0.0 steals (0.6), 0.0 FG% (31.8), 0.0 3PT% (18.2).
Advanced stats, season: 5.9 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 36.2 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 13.2 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Unchanged
Noted: Marble was present Wednesday morning at the team's shootaround, a rare occurrence for someone who had surgery March 10 to correct a detached retina in his left eye and also flew home to attend the funeral of his grandmother. "Mentally, not being able to play and not being part of the team I think is more painful compared to the direct contact with just the eye," he said. "The eye doesn't bother me too much."
VICTOR OLADIPO (age 22, second season)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 38.0 minutes (35.2), 20.0 points (17.8), 5.0 rebounds (4.2), 7.0 assists (4.2), 0.5 blocks (0.2), 0.5 steals (1.6), 51.7 FG% (44.4), 60.0 3PT% (34.8).
Advanced stats, season: 16.5 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 53.6 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 25.0 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Up
Noted: Oladipo and backup point guard Luke Ridnour were the only members of the Magic to make more than one 3-point field goal in their losses to Detroit and San Antonio. At a glance, it would appear he had an impressive outing against the Spurs with 24 points, seven assists and six rebounds. But 11 of those points came in the fourth quarter against a lineup which included no starters or top reserve Manu Ginobili, and it was also only the second game since Feb. 27 where Oladipo did not record a steal. He needs to connect on four more 3-pointers to surpass the total of 74 he had as a rookie, and he has improved his shooting percentages in all three major categories from a year ago. Since missing the first nine games of the season due to a facial fracture, Oladipo has played in 65 of 66 contests.
ELFRID PAYTON (age 21, first season)
Statistical averages, last week (season): 37.2 minutes (29.7), 14.0 points (8.9), 5.5 rebounds (4.3), 10.0 assists (6.3), 0.5 blocks (0.2), 2.0 steals (1.6), 52.0 FG% (42.9), 0.0 3PT% (22.9).
Advanced stats, season: 13.6 player efficiency rating (based on 15.0 league average), 45.7 true shooting percentage (accounting for free throws and 3-pointers), 18.8 usage rate (possessions used per 40 minutes).
Trending: Up
Noted: Going into Wednesday night, Payton led all rookies by far in assists and was second in steals, fourth in minutes played and sixth in scoring. He could also become the first Magic player to play a full 82-game season since Dwight Howard, J.J. Redick and Jason Williams all accomplished that in 2009-10. "By the grace of God, I've never had an injury," he said. "I might have missed a football game really, really young when I had chicken pox or something." Minnesota's Andrew Wiggins and Utah's Dante Exum, who were two of the first five players drafted, are the only other rookies not to miss a game this season. "Most players can't play 82. And he wants to," Borrego said. "He's about coming to work every day. He's at every practice, he's in every drill. It speaks to his character." Though Payton handed out a career-high 13 assists against the Pistons, it's unlikely he'll break Penny Hardaway's franchise record for most assists in a season by a rookie. He would have to average more than 10 assists over each of the Magic's remaining seven games.
You can follow Ken Hornack on Twitter @HornackFSFla or email him at khornack32176@gmail.com.
