Did Magic Make Mistake Passing Up on 'Next Rashard Lewis'?
The Orlando Magic is rolling with Paolo Banchero after making him the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft this summer.
And with training camp now here, fans and analysts will soon begin to figure out if the Magic made the right decision drafting Banchero over Auburn big man Jabari Smith Jr., who many believed would be the top overall pick.
Marquis Daniels, who went to high school in the Orlando area, played 10 years in the NBA. Now, he works as an assistant coach for the Auburn Tigers, and he had a pretty lofty NBA comparison for Smith ... a former NBA All-Star familiar with the Magic.
"I saw him as an athletic Rashard Lewis," Daniels said during his exclusive interview with Inside the Rockets. "Rashard had that high release and shot the ball well. I see Jabari the same way, if you put someone too small on him, he can shoot right over the top of them."
Lewis played parts of four seasons with the Magic from 2007-10, averaging 16.3 points per game. He made two All-Star teams in his career, one with the Seattle SuperSonics in 2005 and the other with the Magic in 2009, the same year the team made the NBA Finals.
If Smith can reach those comparisons for the Houston Rockets, it will be a solid pickup. But the Magic feel confident in its Banchero pick and is happy with the way it turned out for now.
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