Orlando Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman discussed his strategy after winning the 2022 NBA Draft Lottery, adding that he’s keeping all of his options open.
“I know we’ll have a lot of interesting discussions with teams,” Weltman told ESPN. “Obviously we don’t go into this thing looking to trade our pick.”
Weltman was initially supposed to represent the team on stage, but was replaced by Jamahl Mosley at the last minute. The Magic initially had a 14% chance at getting the top pick.
Weltman discussed the attributes he’s looking for in the selection, though did not mention any specific names.
“We look to add a really talented, young, high-character guy to our talent base and our roster. I have no expectations on it. Obviously, we’ll continue to do our work. This really doesn’t change much of the way that we’ll approach the draft.
“We’re just really excited to be able to fall in love with somebody and pick that player,” added Weltman.
The upcoming draft represents the first time the Magic have had the top pick since 2004, when they selected Dwight Howard.
