The 2017 regular season started with a lot of hope and aspirations for the Orlando Magic, the goal was to make the playoffs. The franchise was ready to put the rebuild process behind them and finally make their first postseason appearance since Dwight Howard‘s departure.
The Magic hoped to do this building through the draft, using high draft picks as the bedrocks for the team and its core pieces. The final player in that puzzle was the fifth overall pick from the 2015 NBA Draft — Mario Hezonja.
With that backdrop, many fans expected a lot from Hezonja in his sophomore season.