Orlando Sentinel: How do you describe where the franchise is now, in Year 3, of your rebuilding effort?
Rob Hennigan: I think it’s an important season for us in a lot of ways. We’ve spent the last couple of years building a foundation and a culture that we feel is a good basis to build from, and I think we’re now shifting into a phase of this building plan where we want to start to establish an identity on the floor. This is an important year to see growth and progress for us. We expect to see growth. At the same time, we need to remain disciplined and need to remain committed to our plan and committed to staying the course.
OS: How do you measure growth? Do you measure growth in terms of wins?
Hennigan: That’s one way. I think there are many ways to measure growth, and we’ll utilize a blend of subjective and objective metrics throughout the season to gauge our progress and to make sure that we’re moving in the right direction and seeing signs that our plan is the right strategy.
OS: In Year 3, will the won-loss record occupy a larger percentage of the evaluation than it did in Year 1 and Year 2?
Hennigan: It will be a larger percentage of the evaluation but certainly not the only factor. We want to evaluate things on a global scale and make sure we’re looking at all things across the board relative to the individual play, collective play and the combination of that.
OS: Teams often talk about establishing a “winning culture.” Where do the Magic stand after the last two seasons?
Hennigan: Specific to culture?
OS: Yes.
Hennigan: Like I said, we have a really good foundation of a values-based culture, a culture that’s predicated on high-character individuals, unselfish individuals, individuals who are willing to put in a great work capacity toward improvement. So we feel that those things represent sort of the pillars of what we want to be about, and as we continue to build good habits and the habits that we believe will lead to long-term success, those are the types of things that we’ll always fall back on and continue to build on top of.
OS: What are your expectations for the rookies? What do you want to see from them?
Hennigan: A high level of energy, of focus. A commitment to getting better every day and an approach that lends itself to teamwork and playing for the team.
OS: What have you seen from the players in their workouts over the last few weeks?
Hennigan: Our guys have had a great summer of work and preparation for the upcoming season. A lot of our guys have split time between Orlando and other cities getting work in, and I think the one thing that we’ve noticed is there’s been a heightened work capacity this summer and a real focus and ambition toward improvement. It’s been very consistent throughout the summer, and I think that consistency and the habits that our guys have been working on building this summer will carry into the season for them.
OS: What do you see as the next step for Nik Vucevic?
Hennigan: Continuing to grow his confidence. Continuing to grow his ability to play with strength in all areas of the floor and continuing to just improve his all-around game. We feel like he has a lot of room for improvement and he has the desire and the work ethic to improve. So we expect to see continued growth from him as a player.
OS: How about Maurice Harkless?
Hennigan: Similarly, with Moe, we’re looking for his confidence to continue to solidify as he gets more comfortable in the league and as he gains more experience and a continuance of his mentality to want to affect both ends of the floor at a high level.
OS: Looking back at Victor Oladipo’s rookie season, what do you think that he did well and what are some of the areas in which you expect him to grow?
Hennigan: Looking back on last season, Victor did an excellent job of competing consistently and working through the proverbial rookie growing pains, and I think this year will hopefully be an extension of a better understanding of how the NBA game’s played. As he continues to get more confidence and experience, I would hope that he continues to get more comfortable and continues to be more productive on the floor because of it.
OS: Is this an important year for Andrew Nicholson?
Hennigan: It’s an important year for all our guys. It’s an important year for guys, like I said, to continue to build their confidence and continue to add to their experience. I think it’s an important year for Andrew to continue to work on getting better and continue to do the things that we believe he can do on the floor, which is have a pretty good impact on the game offensively both around the basket and stretching the floor.
OS: Much of Tobias Harris’ 2013-14 season was limited by the high-ankle strain he suffered early on. How do you see the year ahead for him?
Hennigan: Tobias had a great summer. He’s in great shape. He’s worked incredibly hard all summer, which we’ve come to expect from Tobias. And our expectation is that he’s going to have a heck of a season for us in all facets of the game. He’s going to be a big part of our team this year.
OS: Where have you seen the biggest growth in Jacque Vaughn?
Hennigan: I think just his commitment to the plan, his commitment to the vision of how we want to build and his willingness to always put the best interests of the organization first and to coach in a way that lends itself to our plan. Just the patience that he’s shown, I think, has been really admirable, and he’s, I think, over the last couple of years really come to understand more about our players and ways put them in positions to be successful.
OS: Where does the team stand on potential contract extensions for Nik Vucevic and Tobias Harris?
Hennigan: We’ve been in discussions with both Tobias’ and Nik’s representatives. We’ll continue to be in discussions with them. We’re motivated to try to get something done if it makes sense for everybody, and our hope and intention is to do so.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/o ... tml#page=2
Things I took away:
1. No tanking, and expect more wins.
2. Tobias Harris is going to be a big part of the offense this year, as he should be.
3. While several national media members have pegged him as one of the coaches most likely to get fired, Jacque Vaughn is Rob Hennigan's guy. Hennigan almost sounds grateful for Vaughn's commitment to the tank. And if that is the situation, you have to commend Vaughn for that. He tarnished his reputation as a coach in the short term to meet the vision of the team, but I think he'll finally get a shot to show what he can do this season.
