Orlando Magic Players: Terrence Ross is an athlete
The Orlando Magic reacted to the news of adding Terrence Ross with excitement as they see his athleticism and shooting as key additions to the team.
The Orlando Magic have seen Terrence Ross plenty in his five-year career. That is enough for opponents to get a feel for his game. That is enough for a general manager to have some sense of how he plays and how he might fit with a little bit of scouting added in.
The Magic were not going into the Ross acquisition blind. They had information on him — far beyond his season averages of 10.4 points per game and 37.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc. And they knew in acquiring him he would fill some needs for the Magic they desperately needed.
Ross brings to the Magic something they need in his 3-point shooting and scoring ability. At the very least, he will help spread the floor and keep defenses honest. He gives the Magic another scorer, hoping he can help boost the team’s poor offense.
And there is general excitement in adding his skill set to the fold.
“We’re really excited to bring Terrence Ross to our team,” coach Frank Vogel said. “He is someone I have been very high on for a number of years. He has a skill set that matches today’s NBA. You talk about his speed, his athleticism and his 3-point shooting. This is the kind of guy that you need to play in today’s era of spread basketball.”
Vogel described Ross as a “young veteran” as someone who has been on a winning team for a while now, but still has youth to match the Magic’s growth timeline. Ross is 26 years old and on an affordable contract that will pay him $21 million in the next two years.
The Magic currently are the third-worst 3-point shooting team in the league. And Vogel said adding Ross certainly seems to suggest the Magic will be shifting more toward smaller lineups.
General manager Rob Hennigan said the hope is that by improving the offense and spreading the floor more, the Magic can improve their lagging defense too. Making more shots gives a team the opportunity to set their defense up.
“I think again as you watch our team play it’s no secret that we sometimes struggle to make shots,” Hennigan said. “I think his ability to do just that intrigues us. His age, his contract are all things that we feel are positives and strengths for us. As Terrence gets situated here, I think his ability to stretch the floor, his ability to score will help our team on both ends of the floor.”
Ross will not be able to change all of that overnight or alone. But he is having a career year in many ways, scoring a career-high 16.7 points per 36 minutes. There is the possibility he can do more with the bigger role that he is likely to play in Orlando.
The Magic will just have to see what he looks like when they get him on the court.
The plan remains to play him Wednesday. But whether he plays or not is dependent on both players clearing physicals. A source told Orlando Magic Daily that Ross had cleared his physical and they were waiting on Serge Ibaka passing his physical with the Toronto Raptors before activating him and letting him talk to the media.
Eventually, he will play — whether it is Wednesday against the San Antonio Spurs or after the All-Star Break. And what he brings to the team is a healthy dose of athleticism and shooting. The athleticism and scoring stood out to his new teammates when discussing him.
“He’s just a shooter,” Aaron Gordon said. “He shoots the ball with an extreme amount of confidence. That’s hard guarding anybody. No matter if he misses or makes, he’ll shoot the next one. That’s really hard to guard.”
“Obviously the guy is an athlete,” Evan Fournier added. “He’s a terrific shooter. I think his career high is 51. When the guy gets hot, he gets really hot. He’s a guy who has been on a winning team for a few years now. He has big game experience. It’s exciting.”
Both Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier have taken their turns guarding Ross at various points this season and in past seasons. They both noted his athleticism and shooting are hard to handle as a defender. He is someone everyone has to be aware of at all times.
For his career, Ross averaged 10.1 points per game and shot 45.7 percent from beyond the arc in 17 games against the Magic. In the three games between the Magic and Raptors this season, he posted 13.3 points per game and shot 52.5 percent from beyond the arc.
Orlando Magic
Ross certainly found a way to impress Magic brass when the two teams played against each other.
“He’ll definitely bring us a lot of shooting,” Nikola Vucevic said. “He’s a very good shooter. He has had some good games against us. A really athletic guy. He has been playing really well for the Raptors for a few years now. He’s a good wing player that we can use for us. I look forward to playing with him. I played against him in college. I played against him in college. I think he can really help this team a lot.”
Nikola Vucevic played against Ross while Vucevic was at USC. Ross played with Orlando Magic guard C.J. Wilcox while he was at Washington. And, of course, Ross played with Bismack Biyombo last year in Toronto. There should at least be that familiarity to help get him comfortable and settled.
There is already at least some familiarity with Ross and his game. And there seems to be some excitement for what he can bring. Not that the team is happy to see Serge Ibaka leave. Ibaka brought a lot to the team too. And the Magic will have to step up and fill the gaps left behind.
Next: Rob Hennigan: Something was amiss with Orlando Magic
Ross, though will bring something the Magic need desperately. His new teammates seem to know that too as they wait for him to join the team officially and play his first game.