NBA
#16 – Chuma Okeke – Orlando Magic
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
With the 16th overall pick in the NBA Draft, the Orlando Magic have selected Chuma Okeke, the former Auburn standout.
So, now, it appears as if the Orlando Magic will spend the next season rehabbing their first-round pick with Okeke coming off a devastating ACL tear suffered during the Sweet Sixteen. There is no doubt Okeke would have been drafted higher had this injury not occurred — the man clearly has talent.
Okeke shot a career-best 38.9 percent from three-point range during his two-year run at Auburn and an even more impressive 48.1 percent from the field. Had he not gone down during Auburn’s borderline-Cinderella run in the tournament, the college could have very well hoisted the final trophy. Ultimately, Okeke is an ideal stretch four in today’s NBA, as he stands 6-foot-8 and owns a monster 7-foot wingspan.
Pairing Okeke on the court with the young, defensive studs like Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamaba will absolutely cause havoc to any opposing frontcourts. It will be a long year for Okeke as he prepares to come back from injury, but Orlando is in a position to be patient. High-level rehabilitation combined with the blessings of modern medicine should get him back on the court in no-time.
Once that happens, watch out.
