Orlando took Reece Gaines right where it wanted him after trying unsuccessfully to trade up.
By JAMAL THALJI
Published June 28, 2003
ORLANDO - For the first time in a long time, there was no need to put a happy face on the Magic's draft, no need to dredge up its history of failed picks.
Versatile Louisville point guard Reece Gaines is everything Orlando wanted with the 15th overall pick in Thursday night's NBA draft and then some.
"I've always been a leader," Gaines said Friday at the team's RDV Sportsplex headquarters. "But at each level I've been at I had to earn the right to be a leader. You don't just walk into a room and say "I'm a leader.'
"Hopefully I'll earn the right to be a leader here."
Here is where Magic general manager John Gabriel said he wanted Gaines all along. But he was not sure Gaines would make it to No. 15.
Seattle picked twice ahead of Orlando, at No. 12 and 14, and also was in dire need of a point guard. The Magic tried to trade up, reaching as high as the Wizards' pick at No. 10. But the team did not have much to give and found no takers for what little it offered. Gabriel was in constant contact with Gaines' agent, Andy Miller, trying to work out a deal.
When the Sonics took Kansas forward Nick Collison with the 12th pick, Gabriel feared the worst.
"I thought he was gone," Gabriel said. "Andy and I talked all day, every hour, about how we could go up to get (Gaines.)"
Then Seattle's 14th selection went to the podium: Oregon's Luke Ridnour. Trade offers started coming in for Gaines. Orlando ignored them.
The 6-foot-6, 205-pound Gaines was in town Friday afternoon with fellow picks Zaur "Zaza" Pachulia, a 6-11, 240-pound Georgian and Turkish pro, and Kentucky's 6-2, 215-pound guard Keith Bogans. All represent the team's perennial quest to get bigger, tougher and stronger.
"The script as we laid it out for the draft is, we had to find guys with size, with toughness and athletic ability," Gabriel said, "which were elements lacking in last year's team."
This draft was also important for another reason: the Magic was not completely dependent on it to improve. Gaines is part of the team's long-term plans, but Orlando will rely more on free agency to build around Tracy McGrady, Drew Gooden, Gordan Giricek and Pat Garrity for next season.
As for Gaines, he spent Friday trying to clear up misconceptions about whether he is a true point guard, or a two guard playing the point.
He played point guard in middle school, on his AAU team, in high school and all but his junior season at Louisville. But Gaines doesn't mind having to keep answering that question. "Teams who draft me just want to make sure I can play the position," Gaines said. "But I think if you can make plays, you can make plays. I think the two-guard thing started because I'm 6-6, so people say I'm a two. But if you've watched the tapes of me, I've always had an instinctive feeling that when I see someone open, I hit them.
"That's what being a point guard is all about, being a leader and being able to make plays."
