NBA Draft: Indiana PG Jalen Hood-Schifino Fit for Magic?

Jalen Hood-Schifino is quickly rising up NBA Draft boards. Could he make sense for the Orlando Magic to draft?

Jeremy Brener | Apr 17, 2023

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Orlando Magic

ORLANDO - The Orlando Magic can do a lot of damage in this year's NBA Draft with a pair of lottery picks.

The Magic has its own pick, which holds the sixth-best odds to be No. 1, and it has the Chicago Bulls selection, the final piece coming to Orlando in the Nikola Vucevic trade from two years ago.

SI's Draft Digest believes a player who could be in the running for that second lottery pick is Indiana point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino.

"Hood-Schifino will likely be in the Magic’s second pick range, if it conveys from Chicago. And as a 6-foot-6 true point guard, he might be high on their board," Draft Digest writes. "A pick-and-roll maestro whose only true knocks were turnovers and inefficient shooting, Hood-Schifino projects to be an eventual three-level scorer with some passing and playmaking chops, as well as some defensive upside.

"He’s not a project pick, but he’s not exactly a sure fire bet here, either. Orlando could take the risk in developing him as their point guard of the future, creating a jumbo lineup."

Should he join the Magic, Hood-Schifino would join a very crowded backcourt with Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs, Gary Harris and Cole Anthony. While he may have a lot of upside as an incoming rookie, he may not get a whole lot of playing time with those four roadblocking his chance to get on the court.

That being said, it's hard to deny Hood-Schifino's talent and he is someone to watch for, especially if the Magic looks to draft the best player available every time the team is on the clock.

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Published Apr 17, 2023

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.