Courtney Lee, G, 6-5, Western Kentucky -- He gives the Magic a shooting guard who actually can hit a mid-range jump shot, something they struggled to find last season. Lee, after four years at Western Kentucky, should be as NBA-ready (maturity wise) as anyone from the draft. Whether he is good enough is another question because 21 teams passed on him before the Magic made the selection.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: C Dwight Howard, despite a disappointing end to the season, emerged as the best center in the NBA. He became an All-Star starter for the first time, and he was named to the All-NBA First Team for the first time. He led the league in rebounding and in double-doubles. He also had eight games of at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.

MOST DISAPPOINTING PLAYER: The Magic got nothing this season out of G J.J. Redick, who expected to be a regular contributor in his second NBA season. Redick is immensely popular in Orlando, but coach Stan Van Gundy hardly used him, preferring to use Maurice Evans and Keith Bogans at shooting guard.

FREE AGENT FOCUS: The Magic have six free agents on their roster. They are guards Maurice Evans, Carlos Arroyo and Keyon Dooling, along with forwards Pat Garrity and James Augustine, and center Adonal Foyle.

Of the guards, it's likely that only one will return -- probably Dooling -- while the others shop for better offers. Foyle opted out of the second year of his Magic contract, but he still could return if he doesn't find another offer because the Magic still could use him for insurance in the frontcourt. Neither Garrity nor Augustine played much last season and both could be gone. Magic general manager Otis Smith insists that his free agent focus will be on the backcourt when he looks to improve his roster.

PLAYER NOTES:

--C Dwight Howard left Central Florida and headed for Las Vegas, where he will be part of the USA Basketball team mini-camp June 28 and 29. The team is using it as preparation for the more serious training that will begin next month. The team will gather again July 21-25 in Las Vegas. Howard recently had a sad moment when a Make-A-Wish-Foundation visit he had scheduled didn't materialize because the child's condition worsened, eliminating his visit.

--G Keyon Dooling recently was named to the executive committee of the NBA Players Association during their recent meetings in the Bahamas. Dooling replaced P.J. Brown on the board. The Magic now dominate the union, with Pat Garrity and Adonal Foyle also among the nine-member executive committee.

--C Adonal Foyle surprised the Magic earlier this month when he opted out of his contract to become unrestricted, allowing him to seek other offers. Foyle was not happy that he hardly played in the postseason after serving as Dwight Howard's backup during the regular season.