"With the 22nd pick in SB Nation's 2008 NBA Mock Draft, the Orlando Magic Select...

by Ben Q Rock on Jun 19, 2008 9:49 PM EDT in Commentary Comment 10 comments

... Kosta Koufos from The Ohio State University."

Yup. Kosta Koufos is our man. I selected him with the 22nd pick in SB Nation's 2008 NBA Mock Draft. Come on down, Kosta! And put this handsome cap on while you're up here.

I sure would have preferred to select Brandon Rush, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Courtney Lee, or even Donte Green, but they were all gone. But hey, are we really going to complain about getting a 7'00" true center whom many people regard as lottery-level talent?

Thanks for your input in the suggestion threads. Were there not such wide support for taking the best player available, I might have rolled the dice a bit by selecting Alexis Ajinca.

0 recs | Comment 10 comments |

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Very interesting!

Somehow, I get the feeling that Koufos will not drop so far in the real draft next week, but we’ll see. I wasn’t familiar with him at all, but if the Magic somehow do wind up drafting him, he should make a significant impact his rookie year.

Koufos’s stats his senior year… in 27.1 minutes per game… 14.4 PPG on 50.8% FG shooting, including 34.9% on threes… 68% FT shooting… 6.7 rebounds… 1.8 blocks.

Koufos scored 22 points in the NIT championship game to lead Ohio St. to a 92-85 win over Massachusetts.

by Mike from Illinois on Jun 20, 2008 4:02 AM EDT reply actions

Correction...

Koufos was a freshman last season at OSU, not a senior… so, only one season of college ball.

by Mike from Illinois on Jun 20, 2008 4:09 AM EDT reply actions

Great!

That would constitute a homerun in my book!

'Coach, Dwight is a nice guy. Dwight don't hit anybody. But Superman will knock the crap out of you.' - D12

by Eyriq the Red on Jun 20, 2008 7:31 AM EDT reply actions

If this happens

Another positive is that with his style of play he could definitely play with Howard at the 5 and him at the 4, giving us a huge presence inside and maintaining our shooting ability due to his great shot.

'Coach, Dwight is a nice guy. Dwight don't hit anybody. But Superman will knock the crap out of you.' - D12

by Eyriq the Red on Jun 21, 2008 10:42 AM EDT up reply actions

Hollinger just panned Koufos

Hollinger used regression analysis to predict the year 3 PER for all the big men in this years draft and came away with this conclusion:

“Of note here are Koufos and Jackson. Koufos could go in the lottery, but doesn’t have the numbers to back up being selected that high. At the other end, Darnell Jackson appears to be a potential second-round steal.” Moreover, of Koufos was grouped as a “Fringe First Rounder,” which carries with it the warning,”you can pretty much forget about stardom once you get this low.”

I have to concur. Granted, I only watched Koufos once, in the Florida-Ohio State rematch, but he did not impress me all that much. His stat line was good, something like 20-10, but was thoroughly unimpressive with his athleticism against a clearly subpar defensive team like Florida. I dont think his game translates to the pros and he doest have the strength or skill-set of someone like Love to compensate.

Plus the Magic’s history with white stiff’s late in the draft is not great—remember Curtis Borchardt anyone? But at least they traded him for a live body in Humphrey. Anyway, I would have preferred to roll the dice with Ajinca, Hickson or even Jawai.

by WhatAboutFran on Jun 21, 2008 10:14 PM EDT reply actions

Crap.

Well, Hollinger’s been wrong before. But I rather doubt it, in this case. Damn.

Would you have preferred I take a wing player with that pick?

Third Quarter Collapse: An Orlando Magic blog at SB Nation

by Ben Q Rock on Jun 22, 2008 1:45 AM EDT up reply actions

Well, I would have preferred a froncourt player

Since Tony is a dud offensively and Dwights growth at that end seems to be moving at a glacial pace.

I think this brings up an interesting point. I would say ‘take the best player on the board,’ but thats never clear. Does it depend on your team’s hierarchy in the NBA pecking order? If we were San Antonio would the ‘best player’ be someone who projects as a solid rotation player (perhaps Thompson)? If we were New York, is the ‘best player’ the one with the most ‘upside potential’ (Hickson)?

I think we’re still acquiring pieces, and this late in the first round, theres little risk in trying to hit a home run, so I would have rolled the dice with Hickson, who’s only 19, much more athletic and already has an NBA body (250 lbs).

Remember, this is how San Antonio acquired Ginobili and Parker late in the first round and how Detoit is now loaded with frontcourt players like Johnson.

by WhatAboutFran on Jun 22, 2008 2:21 PM EDT up reply actions

Although I do agree with your analysis of Koufos, Hollinger is full of crap. This is the same guy who said Yao Ming would be the best player in the league this season.

In his defense, Koufos has reportedly been killing it in his workouts. Regardless, I’d rather take a guy like Robin Lopez or Ajinca.

by magic fanatic on Jun 22, 2008 11:10 AM EDT up reply actions

The SI.com mock draft...

has Koufos going 14th to Golden State but has Courtney Lee going to the Magic.

by Mike from Illinois on Jun 22, 2008 11:57 PM EDT reply actions

Thanks for the tip, Mike. I doubt Koufos slips to us in the real draft, but if he did, I’d still take Lee over him. We need wings more than we need bigs.

Third Quarter Collapse: An Orlando Magic blog at SB Nation

by Ben Q Rock on Jun 23, 2008 9:49 PM EDT up reply actions