NBA Mock Draft: Orlando Magic Select Elie Okobo from France

NBA Mock Draft Pick #13 — Elie Okobo, Guard, France

SB Nation’s Orlando Magic blog Orlando Pinstriped Post explains the pick:

Moving on from Evan Fournier wasn’t an easy decision. However, with Terrence Ross returning from injury, and some good depth on the wing in the early portion of the second round, moving on from Fournier made sense. Gallinari will be able to come in and fill a little bit of that need at the three, and give us more depth as well. Moving back up to slecet Elie Okobo gives us our point guard of the future. He’s been playing proessionally in France, so he has some experience, and could be a great fit for us moving forward. He has the ability to score the ball, and can initiate the offense at a high level. There will undoubtedly be a learning curve moving from France to the NBA, but Okobo gives us someone who can fill the point guard spot for the foreseeable future.

These are the terms of the trade in our Blogger Mock Draft between the Los Angeles Clippers and Orlando Magic:

Magic receives: 13th pick and Danilo Gallinari

Clippers receive: Evan Fournier

SB Nation’s L.A. Clippers blog Clips Nation explains the trade:

After happily landing our preferred guard with the 12th pick, and with the aforementioned wing targets already off the board, moving the 13th pick became a much more attractive avenue than either selecting another guard or reaching for a wing. We had anticipated that SGA and Miles Bridges being available at 12 and 13 was probably unlikely, so we had happily engaged in trade talks for the 13th pick leading up to the draft. We discussed multiple frameworks with numerous teams, but ultimately preferred to target Evan Fournier over other available established wings. We value Fournier’s scoring and shooting ability on the wing immensely, and think he’ll be an excellent fit next to Tobias Harris going forward. He’s also the same age as Tobias, at 25 years old, a much better fit for our new, evolving core than the 29-year-old Gallinari. We know that Danilo is better than his inefficient, injury-riddled 21 games last season, but between his age, injury history, and contract situation, we made moving him one of this off-season’s priorities. Due to his large deal with two years remaining, no teams were interested in taking a flier on Gallinari without sending the Clippers other bad contracts in return. While we were unable to eliminate that cap hit entirely, spending on a player who fits into our core is much more palatable. Fournier also makes over $5 million less than Gallinari in 2019-20, which will make creating cap space next summer easier.

1. Suns DEANDRE AYTON
2. Kings LUKA DONCIC
3. Hawks JAREN JACKSON
4. Grizzlies MARVIN BAGLEY III
5. Mavs WENDELL CARTER JR.
6. Magic MO BAMBA
7. Bulls MICHAEL PORTER JR.
8. Cavaliers TRAE YOUNG
9. Knicks MIKAL BRIDGES
10. Sixers ZHAIRE SMITH
11. Mavs MILES BRIDGES
12. Clippers SHAI GILGEOUS-ALEXANDER
13. Magic ELIE OKOBO
14. Nuggets KEVIN KNOX
15. Wizards ROBERT WILLIAMS
16. Suns COLLIN SEXTON
17. Bucks LONNIE WALKER
18. Spurs TROY BROWN
19. Hawks DE’ANTHONY MELTON
20. Wolves KEVIN HUERTER
21. Jazz CHANDLER HUTCHISON
22. Bulls JOSH OKOGIE
23. Pacers KEITA BATES-DIOP
24. Nets GRAYSON ALLEN
25. Lakers AARON HOLIDAY
26. Sixers JACOB EVANS
27. Celtics JEROME ROBINSON
28. Warriors KHYRI THOMAS
29. Blazers DONTE DIVINCENZO
30. Hawks MELVIN FRAZIER