Orlando Magic head coach Steve Clifford believes forward Jonathan Isaac is due for a big 2019-20 season.
Clifford says Issac has had a terrific summer, one which saw Issac play with Team USA as a member of the select team.
“He’s had a terrific summer. He looks good physically. He’s worked really hard with (assistant coach) Bruce (Kreutzer) and with (assistant coach) Pat (Delany) on his shooting, his range, his mechanics, his ISOs, his post-ups, his shot-making,” Clifford told Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “I think he’s in a really good place. Last year from Game 1 to Game 82 he made great strides. He was a big reason why our team improved so much. I think people will see he put a lot of hard work in. I think it’ll pay off.
“I think you’re going to see he’s a much-improved range shooter. He shot the ball much better at the end of the year anyway, but I think that he’s much more comfortable with 3-point shooting. As he continues to improve that — and I think it’ll be significantly better than last year — that’s going to open everything up because people are going to be closing harder to him. When they have to close harder to you, it’s going to open things up. He’s got a quick first step to either hand, and I think the whole game can open up for him.”
Last season for the Magic, Jonathan Isaac played in 75 games. He averaged 9.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting 42.9 percent from the field, 32.3 percent from beyond the arc and 81.5 percent from the free-throw line.
The Magic have a really deep frontcourt. All-Star Nikola Vucevic is the headliner, while Aaron Gordon, Mo Bamba and Isaac are the three up-and-coming players who are looking to help the Magic make another playoff run next season.
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