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Josh Robbins has his 4th of his summer series up on what scouts think of our young roster. It's Chuma's turn. He looks like a solid complementary piece - now we just need good players for him to complement.

What NBA scouts are saying about Magic forward Chuma Okeke’s future: ‘He does a little bit of everything’

The quotes:

The 23-year-old forward is earning a reputation as a diligent worker and a superb teammate — a rare youngster who, through the very nature of how he plays and sees the game, innately comprehends how to fit in within an offense. “He knows how to play,” said a scout who works for another team. “He’s one of those guys that’s going to be a really solid pro, a guy that coaches will trust. He does a little bit of everything.”

Okeke knows his strengths and his weaknesses. On offense, he knows when to shoot and when to pass. On the other end of the floor, he has a strong sense of team-defense concepts, such as when to help and when to rotate. Scout B said Okeke “has an uncanny feel of how to play.” This may seem like the most basic of skills, but it isn’t basic for players early in their NBA careers.

Okeke moves the ball enthusiastically, as Scout C noted, and he does so in part because he understands how the game works. If there’s a defender in his face, he’s unlikely to force a shot. If he sees the potential to swing the ball to an open teammate, he’ll make the pass because he recognizes that the pass could help the Magic generate an open shot.

He also has a clear potential to space the floor at a high level. He made 34.8 percent of his 3-point tries as a rookie. That figure may not seem very impressive at first glance, but his shooting stroke is smooth. In 13 games in February, he sank 40.6 percent of his 3s on 2.5 attempts per game. In 13 games in March, he drained 43.2 percent of his 3s on 3.4 attempts per game. Those monthly splits hint at the shooter he might become consistently. “He could make shots,” Scout D said. “You can run pick-and-pop for him. He looks confident. He’s got some girth to him. And he’s a sneaky athlete. He had a few plays where he finished with high-level plays. I’ve got to say he’s skilled. He can score it, especially from the midrange.”

Okeke is listed as 6 foot 8, and television broadcasts don’t provide a sense of his accurate size. He’s listed at 235 pounds, and he’s a sturdy 235 pounds. It’s not easy for opponents to push him around, and that’s a clear positive.

“I like Chuma,” Scout B said. “It just depends on how his body will hold up from a health standpoint.

“He’s got good size. He knocked down some 3s. He looks like he could be a solid piece down the line. It’s just more of him getting more comfortable in his skin, being out on the floor and being able to continue to make his 3s.”

The most intriguing question about Okeke’s future is how he fits positionally with another 23-year-old forward, Jonathan Isaac. Three of the scouts have doubts that Okeke is suited to playing extensively at small forward. All three of those scouts mentioned speed or lateral quickness as a concern on the defensive end. “I think he’ll be able to guard wings, but I don’t think it’s something he’ll be able to do consistently,” Scout A said. “He would be a guy that you match up and say, ‘Hey, can you guard LeBron for a few possessions?’ (You can do that with Chuma) because he’s strong and he’s got the size to do it. I think he’ll struggle with quicker, more athletic wings. But for wings who are more power-based, I think he’ll be a good matchup for them. “I think he’s a four — more of a small-ball four,” Scout A added. “I don’t think you want to play him at the three a lot just because teams are going smaller, so you don’t want him having to chase smaller guys. I think he can play the three at times for you if you want to go bigger, but I like him at the four where he’s able to stretch the floor

Scout C lauded Okeke’s ability to find open shooters on offense and pass to cutting teammates, but Scout C also noted that NBA teams typically want their small forwards to be able to create off the dribble and create their shots. The scout said Okeke doesn’t have creation skills on par with natural small forwards in the league, but also noted that Okeke’s skills are more in line with NBA power forwards’ creation skills. In Scout C’s opinion, the Magic would be making a mistake if they play him extensively at the three because it doesn’t take the best advantage of Okeke’s skill set. “He’s not a three,” Scout D said. “He’s a four. He’s not mobile enough to be a three, in my opinion. He’s just not mobile enough. He’s a ‘new NBA’ four.

So they see Okeke as a PF huh? I would be trending to that line of thinking if I didnt see offseason pics/vids of Chuma getting really slim and losing his "chunkiness" ( based on pics )

Good to see a good scouting report on Chuma, he’s definitely got the tools to be pretty good for this team. I definitely think he looks like a 4 to me, in which case he may be in line to be a pretty good 6th man for this team once T-Ross isn’t with the team anymore. Right now just having a do it all forward on the roster is something we should all be glad about. But he’s not starting over JI if he’s healthy and playing.

I've always thought that JI at the 5 and Chuma at the 4 would be best for us.

That would make it awkward because WCJ is probably too good to be a backup. Bamba, on the other hand, could develop into a backup C in the NBA.

I don’t know about JI playing center, maybe in spurts but I think JI’s body would need to completely change for me to be comfortable with the idea. He’s just too slim to play there too much, that’s just one mans opinion though, I understand the argument as Issac has the tools of a modern NBA center. My personal hope is the Magic start Bamba and get a real look at him.

Chuma has a great opportunity to be our starting sf, he has been told it s his spot to take.
He has been working hard for it, he won't miss out on this opportunity.

He ll surprise many of us during training camp

JTG_92940618 wrote:I've always thought that JI at the 5 and Chuma at the 4 would be best for us.

That would make it awkward because WCJ is probably too good to be a backup. Bamba, on the other hand, could develop into a backup C in the NBA.

I would love to see Chuma and JI at the 4 and 5, but it's probably best for under 10 minutes a game. Still could give us a huge advantage during that 20% of a game, especially if Franz can hold down the 3 during that time.

jonbob17 wrote:

JTG_92940618 wrote:I've always thought that JI at the 5 and Chuma at the 4 would be best for us.

That would make it awkward because WCJ is probably too good to be a backup. Bamba, on the other hand, could develop into a backup C in the NBA.

I would love to see Chuma and JI at the 4 and 5, but it's probably best for under 10 minutes a game. Still could give us a huge advantage during that 20% of a game, especially if Franz can hold down the 3 during that time.

Hampton/Fultz/F-Wagner/Okeke/Isaac is a super-tall small-ball set.


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YosemiteSam wrote:Josh Robbins has his 4th of his summer series up on what scouts think of our young roster. It's Chuma's turn. He looks like a solid complementary piece - now we just need good players for him to complement.

Orlando might have the best, most-deep bench in the league. If only it had a good starting-5.


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drsd wrote:

YosemiteSam wrote:Josh Robbins has his 4th of his summer series up on what scouts think of our young roster. It's Chuma's turn. He looks like a solid complementary piece - now we just need good players for him to complement.

Orlando might have the best, most-deep bench in the league. If only it had a good starting-5.


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when a team finished with the 3rd worst record, i dont think we can be considered as having a deep bench, or at least not a good deep bench

tiderulz wrote:

drsd wrote:

YosemiteSam wrote:Josh Robbins has his 4th of his summer series up on what scouts think of our young roster. It's Chuma's turn. He looks like a solid complementary piece - now we just need good players for him to complement.

Orlando might have the best, most-deep bench in the league. If only it had a good starting-5.


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when a team finished with the 3rd worst record, i dont think we can be considered as having a deep bench, or at least not a good deep bench

this has been the story of the Magic for a decade...we have the best bench in the league, unfortunately, 4 are starting (props to Vuc).

Skybox wrote:this has been the story of the Magic for a decade...we have the best bench in the league, unfortunately, 4 are starting (props to Vuc).

Is there a team in this league that would pass on Okeke? But his role on most teams would be as a 7th-9th man.


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tiderulz wrote:when a team finished with the 3rd worst record, i dont think we can be considered as having a deep bench, or at least not a good deep bench

Let's all remember that there was something like 300 games missed due to injury.

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I want to believe that he's fighting through injuries/rust.



I never saw him as more than a good bench role player but he has looked terrible so far.

thelead wrote:I want to believe that he's fighting through injuries/rust.

Watch on YouTube

I never saw him as more than a good bench role player but he has looked terrible so far.

That's crazy seeing the difference, he looks a shell compared to last year

thelead wrote:I want to believe that he's fighting through injuries/rust.

Watch on YouTube

I never saw him as more than a good bench role player but he has looked terrible so far.

I believe he's still recovering from injury as well. I mean its only 1 month... This is a rebuilding year so as long as he's able to become or look completely healthy by the end of December/Start of January that's all that matters. I mean Gary Harris has started looking a lot better the last few games as well.

This game is a marathon.

Interviews were done this summer.

Chuma has been awful this year, but last year people simply overhyped him last year.
Guy averaged 7,8 ppg on 41,7% FG, 34,8% for 3 and 75% TS, good enough for 51,1% TS.

He spent two years at college, He had "year zero" in nba where he could prepare for nba without grind through games and injuries. History shows that "year zero" rookies have history of playing better than ones who don't. From guys like Larry Bird, Blake Griffin, Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid, Noel we can learn that most players who didn't work during rookie year -don't play like a rookies in their "rookie " year , and are almost always much better prepared than ones who jump from college to nba. ( hell ,there is point to be made that their official rookie year mirrors their careers ,by numbers ).

Issues is, he again got hurt during rookie year and he has been hurt during offseason of year two.
There is also clear issue when you look him in game and he is slower than 37 years old Carmelo Anthony.

And let's be honest here, if he can't make wide open 3s and he can't pass anybody off dribble, he isn't nba player. Being Delux- Iwundu won't get you far. 3-4 years and wash.

drsd wrote:

YosemiteSam wrote:Josh Robbins has his 4th of his summer series up on what scouts think of our young roster. It's Chuma's turn. He looks like a solid complementary piece - now we just need good players for him to complement.

Orlando might have the best, most-deep bench in the league. If only it had a good starting-5.


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pepe: how wrong we were !


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I thought it would a breakout year and he disappointed me and actually regressed.

He has been the biggest disappointment by far, and the alarming thing is that it's getting worse, not better, as he plays more games. That could mean there is an injury issue, but who knows. I would think management would be doing back-flips to shut him down if he were injured, the way they've been managing the roster the last 2 years. Maybe he's not in shape. Maybe Bamba was his personal trainer this summer.