5 reasons Frank Vogel can lead Orlando Magic to NBA Playoffs
By John Buhler
2. Great offensive players in the front court.
When Vogel was at his best coaching the Pacers, he had some outstanding players in his front court. Big men like Roy Hibbert, David West, Tyler Hansbrough, and Luis Scola helped the Pacers solidify a solid front court rotation en route to back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals in 2013 and 2014.
All four of those players weren’t on the 2015-16 club, but that didn’t stop Vogel from having another good batch of front court players this past season. Ian Mahinmi grew marvelously in an expanded role as a starter in 2015-16. No. 11 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft Myles Turner made All-Rookie Second Team. Of course, let’s not forget about the outstanding player George is at small forward and even at the stretch four.
While he probably would have wanted to keep Channing Frye on the club at the stretch four, now with the Cavaliers, or maybe even the Tobias Harris in a role he used Ellis in 2015-16, Vogel still inherits two strong, young assets in the front court in center Nikola Vucevic and power forward Aaron Gordon.
Vucevic is a borderline All-Star with both a great finesse and low-post offensive game. He rebounds well, but defense has been his biggest issue since coming to the Magic from the Philadelphia 76ers a few years back.
Gordon is easily the most athletic player on this young Magic team, which also includes both Oladipo and Hezonja. He could become a great stretch five in this league. With the amount of success Vogel had in developing front court players with the Pacers, perhaps Gordon is the one player on the Magic that will grow the most under his tutelage. If Gordon becomes a star under Vogel, Orlando will be playoff relevant almost immediately.
Next: 1. Outstanding defensive-minded head coach.