Fran

Vazquez

Do you think Dave said ''Hey man, that’s fine. You do what you need to do.’'? We don’t either. One thing is clear, and that’s that the Magic dropped the ball in wasting a first-round pick on Vazquez.

Vazquez will play with Unicaja Malaga, and the two-year deal does not contain an out clause that would allow him to start his NBA career. The contract includes an option for the 2014-15 season, and that’s the earliest we may see him. It’s still undetermined if Vazquez will ever wear a Magic uniform.

Vazquez bailed on Orlando and signed a four-year deal to play in Spain and there are reports that his girlfriend, Ana Toral, has a huge role in every decision he makes, including the one to stay in Spain. When asked how many tickets he needed for an international game, Vazquez couldn’t answer team manager Manolo Rubia. ''Everybody said, two, three, six, whatever. Fran said, ‘I’ll have to ask Ana.’ He can’t even decide how many tickets he wants for himself. Orlando is not losing anything.’' The Magic may argue his point, but it’s a good one.

The length of the extension has yet to be announced, but it’s starting to sound like the 11th pick in the 2005 NBA Draft may never play in the NBA. Vazquez is 31 years old and only averaged 6.5 points and 4.5 rebounds with Unicaja Malaga last season anyway, so his fantasy prospects would be limited even if he hadn’t signed this extension.

He’ll find a way to get out of his contract to be able to compete against the T-Macs, Kobe’s and LeBron’s of the world.

He’s 22 years old and is very experienced from his days in the Spanish league (the equivalent of Triple-A ball). He’ll be a good complement to Dwight Howard in Orlando, although he’s really a power forward more than a center. Either way, it appears to be a very safe pick for the Magic. However, he probably won’t help your fantasy team too much next year, so he’s not worth more than a flyer at the end of your draft.

Spanish language website AS.com reported he may play for Real Madrid this season, but the Magic say they fully expect Vazquez to be in camp this fall. ''We’ve been in contact with his agent almost daily, and we’ve heard nothing that would lead us in that direction,’' said Scott Herring, the director of basketball operations for the Magic. ''That would be 180 degrees different from what we’ve been hearing.’' The Magic certainly hope he’ll show up, as he’s one of the more ''ready to play in the NBA’’ rookies out there.

``I’ve said no because I was afraid to adapt to the American way of life and of not giving the level they have asked,’' Vazquez told the Spanish newspaper Malaga Hoy. ``I’m not a coward, but I prefer to stay in Spain, progress, and who knows? Maybe jump to the NBA in a few years.’' The Magic will retain his rights, but this is quite a blow, as they took Vazquez with the 11th overall pick in the draft. ``Yes, we’re a little surprised,’' Magic co-general manager Dave Twardzik said. ``The message we’ve been getting all along -- before the draft, after the draft -- was that he was excited about playing here. He said it was his dream to play in the NBA.’'

Um, maybe they should have done that before they blew the 11th pick of the draft on him. Obviously they didn’t do enough homework before burning a pick on Vazquez if there was a chance he wasn’t going to play in the NBA this season.

“When this one [contract] finishes, I will like to see if I can play there [Orlando],’' Vazquez wrote in an exchange of e-mails with the Orlando Sentinel last week. “Sure, I will like to play in the NBA one day. I am a more mature player, and I have improved in some areas of my game. I know I can still improve a lot, but I am working on that every day.’' We wouldn’t hold our breath here, but this is a 24-year-old with NBA skills. His current contract has two years remaining, so if you’re seeking a 2009 sleeper, Vazquez could be your man.