The Orlando Magic have only hosted one group workout in preparation of Thursday's NBA draft. It was on Monday, and it included Grevis Vasquez. The Magic are looking for help on the perimeter, and Vasquez's versatility would be a welcome addition to their back court. Ryan Blake, the NBA's scouting director, had a hall-of-fame worthy backhanded compliment for the Maryland point guard,via Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel:
"A big point guard, a guy who's got probably the biggest heart," Blake said of Vasquez. "You really can't look into a guy's heart, but the guy plays with passion. He's a leader. He can really see the offense. He can't defend quicker guards right now and he can't shoot. But he's a guy that competes on both ends, and I think he may have a chance to come off the bench and compete in the league."
I wouldn't call that a ringing endorsement, but he does seem to like Vasquez's attitude. The Magic blogosphere has caught wind of the team's interest in Vasquez and is starting to take a closer look at him as well. Orlando Magic Daily has a long scouting report on Vazquez, and how he would fit into the Magic rotation, here's their verdict:
I think Vasquez could be a good fit with Orlando. He is a scorer who can create off the dribble and push the pace. He is a guy who has proven he can step onto the big stage and produce for his team. Is he the right fit at 29 though? Maybe not.
The Magic have had a checkered history with big point guards. Everyone is trying to forget the failed Jeryl Sasser and Reece Gaines experiments. It would seem to make sense he would play sort of a Hedo Turkoglu roll as a primary ball handler but not the point guard. His fit is probably at shooting guard and third point guard on this team.
Nobody knows what the Magic are thinking, and we likely won't until sometime around 10 pm Thursday evening, but its safe to assume that if they only hosted one workout it would only be with guys they were strongly considering for their pick at 29th overall.
This could disappoint Vasquez, and the Wizards fans who were hoping the local product would be available at #30. There certainly seems to be a lot of smoke, so don't be surprised if Vazquez is off the board when the Wizards make the last pick of the first round.