There Is Nothing Magical About The Magic

By the morning of November 2nd, 2017, the Orlando Magic were one of the more interesting storylines in the NBA, racing out to a 6–2 start over their first 8 games, defeating teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and the San Antonio Spurs in the process.

Fast forward to the first day of March, and the Magic are among the more interesting storylines in the NBA again, only for the exact opposite reason: since that 6–2 start, the Magic have a 12–41 record — easily the worst record in that span — and heading into the last six weeks of the season, they are tied with the Sacramento Kings for the lowest winning percentage in the NBA.

With 20 games left on their schedule, Orlando has only a laughable chance of making the playoffs, which would have to comprise a miraculous combination of them running the table over said 20 games, and getting a lot of help in the form of teams like the Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Miami heat losing about 65% of their remaining games. In other words: they have a snowball’s chance in a hot-and-sticky Orlando summer.

So the question becomes: does Orlando finish out this season playing for some semblance of professionalism and respect? Or do they take the approach that other NBA teams have begun utilizing — more overtly than covertly — in recent years: losing as many games as possible — aka “tanking” — in order to secure better odds for a better pick in the 2018 NBA Draft lottery?

For as heralded a group we saw in the 2017 NBA Draft (in which Orlando took forward Jonathan Isaac), the 2018 draft could be even deeper and more talented. There are five players with potential franchise-changing upside (albeit with their fair share of questions as well), and another six-to-eight guys who could come in and immediately contribute to their teams in the short-term and the long-term.

Orlando absolutely needs help in every way, shape, and form. Save for Aaron Gordon, there isn’t a single player on this roster who is fully “untouchable;” depending on who you talk to, Gordon might not be untouchable either, depending on what a team would be willing to offer in exchange. Point being: expect the Magic’s personnel executives to stick with their current modus operandi, and just take the highest upside available, when they make their pick.

Yet with all of that being said, as some of the teams in the basement of the Eastern Conference alongside Orlando start to find young pieces they can build a team upon, Orlando still seemingly lacks such a group. If you believe Gordon is one of them, that’s fine; but who else does this team have? From a competitive standpoint, the Magic are not in a position to keep getting “base hits” with their draft picks (even if that would be an upgrade from what’s happened in years past). They need “home runs,” especially considering the two guys who could be considered cornerstones (Gordon and Isaac) still have plenty of questions that need to be answered.

That’s why it behooves Orlando to keep the current trend going, and lose as many games as possible, even at the risk of exasperating head coach Frank Vogel. As we saw in years past: there’s a fine line between securing the fourth pick in a draft, which could net you someone like Kristaps Portzingis, and securing the fifth pick in the draft, which could net you someone like Mario Hezonja.

The short-term pain — which fans in Orlando have become accustomed to, anyway — might be worth the long-term gain.

Originally written in a freelance capacity for FloridaSportsChatter.com