2017 NBA Offseason Review: Orlando Magic

Jeremy Brener
Jul 20, 2017 · 4 min read
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Last year marked the fifth consecutive season in which the Orlando Magic failed to make the playoffs. Since Dwight Howard was traded to the Lakers, the Magic have failed to capitalize on the rebuild they have set themselves. Five years post-Dwight, they find themselves in the same spot, if not worse, than the one they were in when they began this rebuild.

This is a very important season for the Magic. The core they attempted to rebuild with grew from a 20-win team in 2012 to a 35-win team in 2016. The thirty-five wins prompted Orlando to make a move for a veteran in Serge Ibaka in exchange for two huge pieces of their young core, Victor Oladipo and their first-round pick from last year, Domantas Sabonis. Now, Ibaka is a Raptor and Oladipo and Sabonis are the exact package that allowed the Thunder to acquire Paul George, and all Orlando has to show for it is Terrence Ross.

Turning the Paul George package into Terrence Ross isn’t the way you compete in the NBA. The trade was a risk for former GM Rob Hennigan. The risk failed, and he was fired earlier in the offseason. Enter John Hammond, the man responsible for shaping two Bucks playoffs teams in three years after winning just fifteen games in 2013–14.

Orlando also brought in Jeff Weltman, the former Raptors general manager, to become their new President of Basketball Operations. As POBO, Weltman has the Magic thinking a new direction and will try to direct them as they re-adjust in the rebuild as opposed to starting from square one again.

The Magic are in good hands with Hammond and Weltman, and it was the first steps in the right direction after the rebuild.

Key Additions

Other than Hammond, the Magic did not do much spending in the offseason. However, Jonathan Isaac was taken with the sixth overall pick and should make an immediate impact for the squad. Isaac can play the three or four and will likely play on the wing alongside Aaron Gordon for the team.

Jonathon Simmons also signed for $20 million, coming a long way after his $150 tryout with the Austin Spurs (then Toros). Simmons will likely split minutes with Terrence Ross, Evan Fournier and Jonathan Isaac on the wings. He was the team’s biggest signing in the offseason, so the team still has room to operate and could be a team with options to move come February.

The Magic made small additions, including veteran guard Shelvin Mack and second round pick Wesley Iwundu, who has yet to be given a contract, but will likely spend most of the year at the team’s new G-League team in Lakeland.

Key losses

The Magic didn’t really lose any significant players this offseason. First, 2016 second-round pick Stephen Zimmerman was released and C.J. Watson was waived in favor of signing Shelvin Mack. Then veterans Jodie Meeks and Jeff Green were let go as unrestricted free agents. The biggest subtractions come from the front office, which was the most important move of the offseason for Orlando, a franchise that needed to be reinvigorated.


Outlook

The Magic are a very young team (D.J. Augustin is the oldest player at 29), so it is hard to see the Magic breaking up this core. However, desptie their young ages, the group has been together for several years. If the core of Payton-Fournier-Ross-Gordon-Vucevic-Biyombo cannot come together, the team might explore trades and look very different come February. However, this is still a very talented roster that was once heading in the right direction. They just need to redirect themselves back on the track they set themselves before last season.

Given how weak the Eastern Conference is, it is hard to completely rule out the 8-seed for this team, but the chances of them playing in late April are very slim. This is a team with a lot of growing up to do before they want to consider themselves a threat in the East. If Isaac can be the team’s superstar they so desperately need, there is hope for Orlando. They will likely end up in the bottom five in the Eastern Conference, which will put them in prime position to have another high selection in the 2018 Draft. However, with many promising young players looking to make their mark, the Magic should be an exciting team to watch next season.

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Jeremy Brener

Written by

Writer/Contributor -- @Outsports, @DreamShakeSBN, @BattleRedBlog, @The94FeetReport #BETRUE #UCF20

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