Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Andrew Nicholson is a player to watch in the NBA. He was worth watching as a rookie and now will draw some eyes as a sophomore.
Nicholson was given a shot by the Orlando Magic to show what he could do with the basketball. Now he needs to demonstrate, with a strong offseason of work, that he can do it with consistency.
The good news for Nicholson now is that the Magic have decided to build with their young players. Nicholson give Orlando something to work with in a major way.
For the season, Nicholson averaged 7.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game. He started 28 of the 75 games he appeared in for the Magic and averaged 16.7 minutes, 78 points and 3.4 rebounds a game. Magic coaches should put him in a position to shoot more next season because he usually makes good things happen. From the floor, he shot 52.7 percent and was almost 80 percent from the line. He also averaged only one turnover per game.
Nicholson is obviously a player who can provide the Magic with plenty of talent. Orlando has several of promising young players but is putting Nicholson at or near the top of the list. The team, with the NBA’s worst record, should come out of the lottery with a good draft pick. If Nicholson can improve his aggressiveness and get more minutes, it would be a fun season next year for Orlando.
But the Magic will have to be patient with player like Nicholson. They’re at the stage where they still make too many mistakes. But that’s the only way they can improve.
