The Orlando Magic hold two picks in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft. That is a major opportunity to add talent to the roster and operate with some aggression throughout the draft.
Indeed, the Magic are expected to be aggressive this offseason. With the team operating with a "win-now" lens now, it does not seem like the team has the time for two rookies. After all, Jett Howard, Tristan da Silva and Caleb Houstan all struggled to crack the rotation. And the Magic seemingly want to add more veterans.
Of course, the Magic should be looking to explore every avenue they can to improve their roster. This is a fairly deep draft with quality prospects throughout the first round. Orlando can still add players to the roster.
And with two picks in the first round, the team should be aggressive to chase the prospects it wants. In general, the Magic should be aggressive pursuing the players they want.
No one should rule out the Magic combining their picks to move up in the draft. Jake Fischer reports on the Stein Line Substack (subscription required) that rival executives are monitoring the Magic as a team that could look to move up in the Draft. Orlando has the tools to do so and ensure the team gets the prospect it wants.
As much as the draft has been de-emphasized this offseason with the potential to make a major trade, Orlando has a few players it could trade up for, including one that fits the team's type to a tee.
It is a running joke that the Magic are obsessed with length and positional versatility. They love chasing players who have physical measurables that cannot be developed. They are born with it.
The fastest riser in this draft fits that to a tee.
Meet Washington State wing Cedric Coward.
Coward played only six games at Washington State last year, averaging 17.7 points per game and 7.0 rebounds per game with 55.7/40.0/83.9 shooting splits. He took 5.0 3-point attempts per game and 5.2 free throw attempts per game.
That is an incredibly small sample at Washington State, now a West Coast Conference school. He did not make it to conference season before suffering a torn labrum in November that ended his season.
At Eastern Washington in 2024, Coward averaged 15.4 points per game and 6.7 rebounds per game with 56.5/38.3/89.5 shooting splits. He has several years of consistent shooting and impressive rebounding numbers for a guard.
Coward was preparing to step onto a bigger stage and continue his growth. He was set to transfer to Duke next season.
But he opted to stay in the Draft this year as his draft stock skyrocketed. That has a lot to do with his physical tools an those intangibles the Magic seem to target in their draft prospects.
Coward measured at the Combine at 6-foot-5.25 without shoes and a 7-foot-2.25 wingspan. He made 31 of 48 threes in the Combine's two shooting drills. Coward also posted a 38.5-inch max vertical leap, the fifth-highest vertical leap among guards. His 32.5-inch standing vertical leap was fifth in the NBA Draft Combine, and the best among likely first-round picks.
Coward went from a physical curiosity and potential second-round pick to getting top-10 or Lottery pick buzz -- J. Kyle Mann of The Ringer has him going No. 13, Jonathan Givony of ESPN has him going No. 22, Jeremy Woo of ESPN has him going No. 26, showing just how wide his range might be.
Orlando may not need to move up to get him. But then again, Coward would not forgo Duke and the NIL opportunities that come with that without some sense that he is guaranteed to go in the first round.
Coward is an interesting prospect because of the numbers he put up and those physical traits.
The only signs of warning are how he played against high-level competition.
Coward scored only nine points on 3-for-10 shooting against Iowa in one of his six games this past season. In 2024, he opened his season with nine points against Utah, 16 against Ole Miss and 21 points against Cincinnati, combining to shoot 3 for 16 from deep in those three games. Granted those were his first games where he established himself as Eastern Washington's best player.
But having gone from a Division III player to playing at Eastern Washington to playing at Washington State, Coward has few games against high-level competition, even at the collegiate level.
There is plenty of mystery about whether Coward can scale up and succeed at the NBA. But the good news is that he almost certainly would not be asked to carry a large offensive role, focusing on using his physical tools and athleticism on defense and in transition and focusing on being a catch-and-shoot 3-point threat. Those seem like things he can do and a role he can fill for any team.
Coward's physical tools should have him on the Magic's radar. He is the kind of prospect Orlando would typically go all-in on and fall over itself to draft. The fact he is a solid shooter only adds to that intrigue.
The Magic will have to consider which prospects they want and target them specifically. Even if that means trading up to get them. Coward is a clear candidate the Magic would hunt for. And perhaps the team would have to trade up to get him if his stock keeps trending up.