NBA DRAFT

June 22, 2023

Anthony Black

Q. How excited are you to join the Magic?

ANTHONY BLACK: I'm super excited. There's a lot of talent on the floor, a lot of young dudes. It'll be a fun team, for sure.

Q. The Magic, they're a team with a lot of defensive-minded guys. You yourself have proven to be great on that end, as well. How good does it feel to go to a team that not only has young talent but talent that you project to align with very well?

ANTHONY BLACK: Yeah, it's a good feeling. It's always good playing with dudes who compete on both ends and want to win. I see a lot of that playing with this group, so it's going to be fun.

Q. Anthony, what would you say your main strengths are, and also how do you feel you blend with Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner particularly?

ANTHONY BLACK: I think my playmaking is definitely my best ability. I think playing with two good players like that will make it a little easier on me and them because I can help them get buckets and they can take some of it off me at the same time.

It's always fun playing with good players whenever you're a playmaking guard.

Q. In what ways obviously have you been preparing for the draft while trying to grow naturally as a player? In what ways have you added to your game to fit better or give yourself a chance to succeed in the NBA?

ANTHONY BLACK: Just shooting a lot of shots every day, continuing to gain confidence in my jumper, continuing to get stronger in the weight room and attack that every day. That's been the main focus in pre-draft.

Q. I don't know if you had a chance to watch the Magic at all last season obviously playing at Arkansas, but just based on what you know about the team, do you feel like you have the perfect identity as far as your style to mesh with that type of grit-and-grind type of Magic team that wants to be a great defensive squad?

ANTHONY BLACK: For sure. I take a lot of pride in defense. I think that's a lot of the reason I'm here is my defense. I think that's something I can bring from day one. I think that's just something I can bring to the team from day one is probably defense.