Orlando Magic Highlights to Get You Pumped Up for 2014-15 Season

Despite their 23-59 record and last-place finish in the Southeast Division last year, Orlando Magic fans have plenty to be excited about with a new season just around the corner. 

Head coach Jacque Vaughn leads one of the youngest teams in the NBA, a squad which is looking to build on last year's learning experience and take the next step in their evolution as eventual Eastern Conference contenders. 

Gone are veterans Arron Afflalo and team lynchpin Jameer Nelson, two stalwarts who helped keep the ship afloat in the two seasons since the franchise-altering Dwight Howard trade in the summer of 2012.

Now with two exciting lottery picks, new veterans and young studs on the rise, the Magic rebuilding project could go quicker than many anticipated and should provide entertaining basketball all season long.   

Here are some high-flying fresh faces, incumbent starters ready to take the next step and all the highlights you can handle to get ready for the upcoming Magic season. 

6. Channing Frye from Downtown

The Magic ranked in the bottom 10 among all NBA teams in field-goal percentage, three-point percentage and three-point attempts. The addition of Channing Frye should help in all of those statistical categories, particularly with the long ball. 

Frye sat out the entire 2012-13 season after being diagnosed with an enlarged heart. He returned to the Phoenix Suns last season and played all 82 games, averaging 11.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in just over 28 minutes a night. 

The sharp-shooting big man signed a four-year, $32 million contract with Orlando at the onset of free agency in an effort to provide some much-needed floor spacing and veteran leadership to a franchise seemingly devoid of both. 

For his career, Frye is a 38.5 percent three-point shooter, which makes him the best long-distance shooter by percentage on the entire team.

His effect on the lineup will be threefold. First is the obvious: He is a skilled shooter who can help improve a team that has been pretty bleak beyond the arc. His inside-out game will be a welcome asset, and he should be able to play well alongside Nikola Vucevic, who spends most of his time near the basket.

Secondly, he provides necessary floor spacing for Victor Oladipo and rookie Elfrid Payton. Seventy-five percent of Oladipo's field-goal attempts last season were two-pointers. He likes to attack the basket rather than settle for long threes where he only shoots 32.7 percent.

The threat of Frye on the outside can help give both Oladipo and Payton more room to operate, since they will be the dominant ball-handlers.

Finally, he is a veteran leader on one of the youngest teams in the NBA. He's playoff-tested from his time in Phoenix and could be a calming influence during what will be another season of growing pains in Orlando. 

According to multiple reports, he sprained his MCL two weeks ago, however there appears to be no structural damage. It's a situation to monitor, but expect Frye to be ready to contribute early and often this season.  

5. Evan Fournier off the Bench

Add another shooter to the list. 

Evan Fournier, the talented young guard from France, has shown flashes of the big-time potential that made him a first-round pick during the 2012 NBA Draft. 

Acquired from the Denver Nuggets along with the no. 56 pick in the 2014 draft for Afflalo, Fournier projects to be one of the first guards off the bench and a regular in the backcourt rotation. 

Like Frye, Fournier thrives beyond the arc, shooting 38 percent during his two seasons as a pro. 

He's had an up-and-down career thus far. Last season, playing 76 games (as opposed to just 38 his rookie year), Fournier saw all his counting stats improve due to his minutes increase, but saw most of his efficiency stats plummet. 

His true shooting percentage dropped from 59.7 to 53.3 in year two, and his player efficiency rating dipped from 13.8 to 10.3, per Basketball Reference.  

Regardless, Fournier is only 21 years old with ideal size (6'6") for his 2-guard spot. He can be an efficient long-range shooter (see video above) and his presence should help Oladipo and Payton much like Frye's will. 

He's an intriguing prospect who has a chance to grow with this young team. Coach Vaughn is looking forward to seeing just how good Fournier can be, per Fox Sports:

"

I'm hopeful that we can take advantage of the skills that he showed in Denver but also put him in a position to have the basketball in his hands and make some decisions with the basketball in his hands and see a little bit more than we saw in his previous couple of years.

"

4. Young Front Line: Nikola Vucevic, Tobias Harris and Maurice Harkless

According to ESPN, the projected Magic frontcourt is Nikola Vucevic, Tobias Harris and Maurice Harkless. 

Vucevic is a double-double machine, routinely finishing among the league leaders in rebounds. He has seemingly exceeded all expectations since coming over as a part of that monster Andrew Bynum/Dwight Howard four-team trade in August 2012.

He averaged 14.2 points and 11.0 rebounds per game last season while setting career highs in true shooting percentage, usage rating and PER. He's a key piece to this team on the rise, and at just 23, he's one of the best young bigs in the league.

Harris, as evidenced by the highlight package above, can do it all for the Magic at the 4 spot. In his second season with the Magic, Harris hit career highs in points (14.6) and rebounds (7.0).

He's seen here showcasing a crafty inside-outside game, albeit against the lowly Philadelphia 76ers. Harris routinely blows past Thaddeus Young off the dribble, seemingly getting to the rim at will and either finishing or drawing a foul.

He recognizes the mismatch and posts up smaller defenders, and he can even knock down an open mid-range jumper if he's left open.

Harris also set career highs in true shooting percentage and PER last season.

Harkless is an intriguing piece to the frontcourt puzzle. Known mostly for his defensive abilities, the versatile wingman put up modest counting stats but improved in one noticeable area. 

As a rookie, he shot just 27 percent from three-point range. In year two, he bumped that up to 38 percent on 37 more attempts. If the long ball can be a permanent fixture in his game, it would be a huge boon to his very raw offensive repertoire.

He's still somewhat of a project offensively and needs to show consistency in order to see his minutes increase, something he was often frustrated with last season. 

But he's optimistic about the Magic this season and thinks they're on the right track. 

“It’s been a rough couple of years to say the least but we’re definitely improving," he said per Sports Talk Florida. "I don’t expect to lose that many games again this year. I think we’re a better team now.”

3. Improvement from Victor Oladipo

The presence of a true point guard like Payton may benefit Oladipo more than anyone. 

The runner-up for Rookie of the Year spent most of last season out of position, playing point guard for the Magic. He shot just 32 percent from beyond the arc and 41 percent overall from the field. 

But the thing that's most endearing about Oladipo's game is his fearlessness. He attacks the rim with reckless abandon. Look at the video above where he's consistently barreling through veteran point guards like Deron Williams and Kyrie Irving, relentless in his pursuit of the basket. 

Defensively, he has the potential to be a true menace, if he's not at that point already. He finished ninth in steals last season and exuded the same bulldog mentality on that end of the floor. 

Turnovers were an issue last year, but expect that number to increase with him playing more off the ball and sharing the playmaking duties with Payton.

Like so many young guards in the NBA, he needs to improve that outside shot, which is a challenge he welcomes. He stays confident regardless of the percentages, per the Orlando Sentinel:

"

I'm not going to be afraid to shoot it. I'm just going to continue to keep shooting with confidence. I can work on it; it's not like I don't work on it. The only way I can better it is if I continue to shoot it, so I'm just going to continue to shoot with confidence.

"

His head coach echoed that sentiment and testified to his work ethic.

"He's a young man that's very determined that he's going to get what he wants," Vaughn added. "He's going to work at doing that. He's put himself in a position in life that he's worked to get here, and I don't see that stopping. He's a guy that will take obstacles and definitely try to step over them.

2. Aaron Gordon Flying High

The high-flying Aaron Gordon is a highlight reel waiting to happen. 

At 6'9" with a 7' wingspan and freakish hops, Gordon was arguably the most athletically gifted player in this year's draft. That's saying something considering the athletes (Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, etc.) who were selected. 

To say he's raw offensively would be an understatement. He lacks a consistent jumper and any semblance of a post game. Most of his offensive production is going to come from catching lobs or cleaning up misses around the rim. He excels at attacking the basket. 

While he's a work in progress on that end, he's ready to hit the ground running defensively. With his athletic prowess, tremendous footwork and pure speed, he'll be a potential nightmare on that end for opposing ball-handlers. 

It's unclear where he'll get most of his minutes—the 3 or the 4—but it's only a matter of time before he makes an impact. Ideally, they'd like to have him out at the 3, but that's contingent on him refining his perimeter game—far from a slam dunk at this point. 

Vaughn sees him as a defensive playmaker, per Hoops Hype:

"

He's a great addition to the culture that we have. We're really about having unselfish guys. He's a defensive-minded guy, who has a great athletic ability. He'll grow on the offensive end of the floor. He's a guy who will come to work every day and that's what we're looking for. 

"

The Magic selected Gordon at No. 4 in June's draft—over perceived "need" guys like Dante Exum and Marcus Smart, or even a more refined post player like Julius Randle—because they also see his explosive potential. 

1. Elfrid Payton Running the Point

Even though Gordon is the much more lauded prospect and was taken six spots ahead of Payton, the young point guard will have more of an impact in Orlando this season.

In fact, Payton could potentially be one of the biggest steals from the 2014 NBA Draft. A fantastic package of speed and court vision, he is exciting to watch. 

Whether he's effortlessly flicking alley-oops to crashing big men or blowing past opposing point guards and finishing strong at the hoop, he's constantly putting pressure on the defense. 

Vaughn likes what he sees so far out of his young point guard, per the Orlando Sentinel:

"

I think part of that aggressiveness is a mindset of wanting to put the ball on the ground and getting in the teeth of the defense and making plays at the rim. He has the ability to get into the paint. He has the size to do it and some instincts — just natural instincts — of what to do when he gets to the rim. So I've been very pleased with that.

"

Last season, Oladipo played a bit of a hybrid guard role, balancing minutes at both the 1 and the 2. Payton is as pure of a point guard as you can get. He's ready to seize the opportunity. 

"He wants to win whether it's a one-on-one drill, whether it's a five-on-five scrimmage," Vaughn added. "His ability to compete and raise the level of his teammates with that passion of competing? I definitely have been able to see that."

Young bigs on the rise, Oladipo picking pockets on the perimeter and Payton-to-Gordon lobs? Get your popcorn ready, Magic fans.  

All individual statistics courtesy of Basketball Reference. Team statistics courtesy of ESPN. Follow Stephen on Twitter for more hoops discussion.