Hedo Turkoglu Was The Orlando Magic’s Most Underrated Player
Hedo Turkoglu's persistent scoring helped the Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic have been in the NBA for 34 years and haven’t had a lot to celebrate for quite some time. Sure, their rookie, Paolo Banchero, has a bright future but it’s unknown how long he’ll be in Orlando.
During their time in the NBA, the organization has featured great athletes such as Shaquille O’Neal, Dwight Howard, Nick Anderson, and Tracy McGrady.
However, the one player who never gets talked about is forward Hedo Turkoglu.
When Turkoglu joined the Magic in 2004, he played arguably his greatest basketball. His development was recognized as he won the Most Improved Player award in 2008. Averaging double-figures every year he was there, he was an efficient scorer, shooting 43 percent from the field and 37 percent from the 3-point line.
Turkoglu scored a career-high 39 points against the Washington Wizards on Mar. 19, 2008.
He helped the Magic reach the playoffs on five separate occasions. In the postseason, he averaged 14 points, four rebounds, and four assists.
During his eight years in Orlando, Turkoglu averaged 14 points, four rebounds, and three assists. He is No. 7 on their all-time scoring list with 7,216 points, No. 7 in rebounds with 2,221, No. 6 in assists with 1,927, No. 10 in steals with 425, and No. 5 in three-pointers made with 794.
Cory Nelson is a contributor to Sports Illustrated’s channel “Inside The Heat”. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson and Instagram @ckenzynelson