The Orlando Magic are getting an unexpected boost from French man Evan Fournier as he continues to fill up the stat sheet every night for his team.
Getting drafted as the 20th overall pick by the Denver Nuggets in 2012, Fournier spent much of his rookie season with the team as a benchwarmer as he only averaged 5.3 ppg. In his second year, he improved a bit by averaging 8.4 ppg.
Then, he was traded for Arron Afflalo and he averaged 12 ppg for the Magic in his first season with the team. Now, he is the leading scorer of the team by averaging a whopping 19.0 ppg, numbers that are making a lot of noise and enables Fournier of being named as the Most Improved Player this year.
The Magic are not getting this much production from their lottery picks and Fournier but for him, it was never his goal to become the go-to guy for the Magic team.
"I have to keep working on this challenge of being a top option, one I have to accept to try to lead the team and go back to the playoffs," Fournier told Yahoo Sports. "My goal is never to be a No. 1 option. I just want to play as good as I can, and help Orlando go to the playoffs and have a great season. I don't think about any numbers or stats.
Although the experience of being the number one option of the team is nothing new to him, he said that his experience as the French national team's go to guy helped him a lot to fit in to the role nicely.
"When I was 19, I had the ball in my hands in every close game and it was a learning experience for me as a pro. I was already the leading scorer of my French team the year before I got drafted. It was my first time being the leader of a team, and it's helping me now. I've learned so much from it. Everyone pushes me to be the best I can be."
"I don't have any limits. Whatever happens, I want to give my best," Fournier said.
