Orlando Magic head coach Steve Clifford says Magic big man Nikola Vucevic is “definitely” an All-Star and he is also impressed with how good of a defender the scoring center is.
Clifford, in his first season with the Magic, always knew Vucevic was a talented and underrated player, but he didn't realize how smart and good of a rebounder he was until he got a chance to see him everyday.
“Do you look at (Nikola Vucevic) as being an All-Star player, Steve?”, asked Frank Isola and Brian Scalabrine on SiriusXM’s The Starting Lineup.
“Definitely,” Clifford said. “He’s also a much, much, much better defender than I had realized. He’s very smart, his pick-and-roll defense has been good, he’s a very good defensive rebounder – he always has been – and he’s a terrific competitor.
“If you want to look at value to a team, again, I think people talk a lot about the guys that are range shooters and how they create space for their teammates, so not only is he putting up big numbers scoring and rebounding, but he’s a big part of why our defense is getting better. When he’s on the floor, he puts enormous pressure on the defense because he’s a center, who can shoot threes, who has a very good post-up game. I think the biggest difference is he’s a range-shooting big, who can both shoot and pass.”
In 42 games this season for the Magic, Nikola Vucevic is averaging 20.1 points, 11.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while shooting 52.6 percent from the field, 38.0 percent from beyond the arc and 76.7 percent from the free-throw line.
Vucevic will become a free agent in the summer. Orlando is hoping they can come to a long-term extension with him.
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