The rebuild of the Orlando Magic is slow. Due to the difficult cap situation, no major leaps were possible in the 2018 off-season either. After all, the franchise’s hope remains with us for many years to come.
After a disappointing pre-season, there was no major upheaval for the Orlando Magic in the off-season 2018. The biggest change was probably in the coaching position. After only two years in Orlando, Frank Vogel had to leave his position there, with former Hornets coach Steve Clifford taking over.
Right at the start of the Free Agency, he was pleased about the probably most important contract signature of the past years with the Magic. Restricted Free Agent Aaron Gordon extended his working paper and earns relatively moderate $80 million over the next four years.
Another important building block for the future was brought on board via the draft. In sixth place, the Magic chose Mohamed Bamba, who will cause a sensation under the boards in the future. Orlando also secured the services of Forwards Melvin Frazier (No. 35) and Justin Jackson (No. 43) on draft evening.
To complete the squad, Isaiah Briscoe came from Europe and General Manager John Hammond led trades for Jarrell Martin (coming from the Grizzlies) as well as for Jerian Grant (Bulls) and Timofey Mozgov (Hornets). The latter will probably not play a major role in the planning of the Magic managers, but the deal made it possible to get rid of the Bismack Biyombo contract (2 years, 34 million) and at the same time to land a capable backup point guard in the person of Grant.
That was bitterly necessary, since with Arron Afflalo (unknown target), Shelvin Mack (Grizzlies) and Mario Hezonja, who after three unlucky years in Orlando starts a new beginning with the Knicks, three guards emigrated. Marreese Speights (Guangzhou Long-Lions, China) also left the team.
The most important element of the Magic Offseason was undoubtedly the extension of Gordon’s contract. GM Hammond thus managed to retain the best player the franchise has seen since Dwight Howard. He is the flagship of a young, ambitious team.
Speaking of young and ambitious: Neither Nikola Vucevic nor his new center colleague Mozgov fit these attributes. Accordingly, it is very likely that Hammond will sooner or later arrange a trade for Vucevic, according to media reports Hammond is already looking for a possible deal. The Montenegrins promises the highest value among the Magic Centers.
The motto for the coming season is clear: First and foremost, the existing talent is to be developed further. The fact that the Magic in person of Clifford has already installed the fifth head coach since 2012 shows that this has not worked out particularly well in the past.
There is definitely potential in the squad. From Gordon and the draft newcomer Mo Bamba to Jonathan Isaac, who played only 27 games in 2017/18 due to injury problems, the player material has some promising names to offer. Now it’s up to Clifford to squeeze the best possible performance out of the players.
The 56-year-old has not yet earned the very best reputation in player development, but he should help the young team to develop a defensive identity and strength. He also knows the organisation from his time as Stan Van Gundy’s assistant. This is certainly not a disadvantage.
Some of the contaminated sites from the past still stand in the Magic’s way. After the former GM Rob Hennigan had distributed long-term guaranteed contracts to players like Biyombo or D.J. Augustin, the Magic is currently one of the few franchises that lie above the Salary Cap despite a sustained rebuild.
So Hammond, the new man, was largely handcuffed. The new entrants came mainly via trade or draft. This in turn leads to a search for capable backups in Orlando’s squad in vain. The point guard position is relatively weak at all levels, behind the remaining starting five there is a lack of seasoned NBA players in many positions.
And in addition, a real star is missing in the team. Aaron Gordon’s potential as a franchise player has already flashed from time to time. But can he deliver an entire season at the highest level? What’s more, he’s actually been most effective on the four so far. Apart from him, the two biggest talents of the squad are also bigs with Isaac and Bamba and need time to play. The front court is too full, Orlando’s squad lacks balance.
The Magic have all their hopes that Gordon will be able to take the next step on the three – this is shown not least by the new contract. Last season, the athletics freak averaged 17.6 points and 7.9 rebounds, both values are career highs. Gordon, just 22 years old, will have to increase this yield again in order to meet the high expectations of his person.
Apart from Gordon, the success of the franchise depends first and foremost on the development of the young players around Isaac or Bamba. At the core of the team are some players who promise the Magic fans a promising future. However, Orlando has already found itself in a similar situation in recent years. The respective results are known.
Considering the low flexibility with which the front office of the Magic had to work, one has to praise them for an overall successful offseason. They did absolutely nothing wrong with Bamba in sixth place in the draft, and Gordon also managed to extend his contract. The course for the future is set and Clifford is a coach who should be able to work well at least defensively with this long-armed and athletic front court.
On the other hand, the Magic didn’t make a big leap forward, but that wasn’t possible under the given circumstances. The coming season will show to what extent these players can realise their potential and whether the squad fits together at all. In the best case scenario, the Magic laid the foundation for the future this summer. Otherwise, the next upheaval will wait next summer.
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