Is it time Orlando Magic should change frontcourt starters?

So who gets the starting roles?  Does it change?

Dedmon is a lock to get his minutes now, it seems.

He is a consistent threat on the glass, plays tough defense every night, and is only getting better. But outside of Dedmon and Vucevic, it is really just an endless list of questions. There is the matter of whether Nicholson can be consistent or whether Sunday night against the Hornets was just a flash in the pan.

Harkless has to stay mentally engaged on both ends of the court, but his flashes are as bright as any player’s on the roster. His backdoor cut in the Hawks game was run picture perfect and drew some “oohs” and “ahhs” from the Philips Arena crowd. In the Hornets game, his block on Bismack Biyombo, though called a foul, was a top highlight of the game. All three reserves have outplayed the starters, and that’s a problem.

Aaron Gordon, too, has had his moments.  He was three for three from the floor in the first half against the Miami Heat on Feb. 25, but he rolled his ankle and has not played since. He is one of the Magic’s best defenders already, and could eventually evolve into Shawn Marion-type combo forward.

If he can stay healthy, he is in the same discussion as the other Magic reserves.  In other words, he could start, too.

At what point does James Borrego simply bench Channing Frye? Is Tobias Harris the best answer for the starters as weak as he has been defensively? The case for starting Dedmon is certainly there, even with the concerns previously addressed here in play.

O’Quinn could easily step in and start getting minutes again. Nicholson and Harkless could be in the middle of being showcased, but their minutes have been productive.

The numbers are fairly illustrative, though. The Magic have been dominated by opposing frontcourts early in games, and the starters are not getting the job done. The Hawks do happen to have two All-Stars in its frontcourt, and the Hornets’ Al Jefferson has been an All-Star. But allowing the likes of DeMarre Caroll, Cody Zeller and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to do damage, too, is less excusable.

While all three are quality NBA players, the Magic cannot consistently allow fringe starters to step up and have near-career nights. It stands to reason that effort alone can prevent a lot of this, and while the case could be made that Frye and Harris are sandbagging it defensively, it is more productive to just note that Dedmon’s energy changes games. He is willing to sacrifice his body and play his heart out.

Can that statement be made for Frye or Harris? Probably not. Or at least not in the same way.

Until the starters begin to play like starters, the experiments can certainly begin. Borrego’s first of those experiments came in the backcourt by supercharging the minutes of Willie Green. Elfrid Payton was erratic, so Borrego turned elsewhere. But he has been far less quick to do that with the frontcourt.

While Harris can score and Frye can shoot, the Magic’s issues run far deeper than that. Vucevic can’t grab every rebound and he shouldn’t have to. Dedmon solves that.

There is little rim protection with Frye or Harris at the 4-spot. O’Quinn fixes that. Nicholson adds scoring. Harkless high spirited defense. Everyone is bringing too much to the table to ride in the stagnancy of the starters’ mediocrity.

Change can come, but it has to begin with giving the guys who play hardest the most minutes.

This Magic team is all but mathematically eliminated from the postseason, so the remainder of the year can be spent allowing guys audition for larger roles. We already know at this point what Frye and Harris can do, but the same statement can’t be made about the likes of the younger talent on this roster.

Next: What has been the effect of James Borrego's tinkering?