The Orlando Magic are in need of interior help, but can any of that be snagged without paying a fortune?
The Orlando Magic likely will not do a lot of spending this summer. There is the off chance the team makes a run at the likes of Draymond Green or even Paul Millsap, but most likely this is going to be the summer of finding a bargain to fortify the frontcourt and add depth.
Orlando’s interior defense was nothing short of putrid this season, and there are some options on the market that could begin to shore that up without breaking the bank.
None of these five names are guys who will cause the Amway Center to sell out all 41 games, but each could result in winning a few more of those home games. There just were not enough home-court victories (13-28 at the Amway Center) to satisfy even those with the lowest expectations.
While rebuilds typically are not a thing of beauty, getting a guy who plugs the 4-spot well and can shore up some weaknesses Orlando had is imperative.
Rim protection and shooting are both on the bill, and guys that can offer both are nearly nonexistent. However, of these five bargains each offers enough that the Magic would be better for signing them.
Next: The Swede Assassin
Jonas Jerebko is not a household name, and none of these guys are, but the Swede is an effective shooter and he is tough. That sounds appealing given the Magic need both those attributes badly.
Jerebko is in the beginning of his prime at age 28, but if the Magic wanted to get a guy who could stretch the floor some and pull down boards, he is the guy.
He likely would not start. He did not start for the Boston Celtics or Detroit Pistons this year.
But he would be a very solid reserve. He shot 38 percent from 3-point range this season and has been better than that mark for the last three years.
Per-36, Jerebko puts up great numbers: 14.1 points, 9.6 rebounds and two assists. He is a little foul-prone at times (four fouls per-36), but he is less so than Dewayne Dedmon, who did start (six fouls per-36).
That is to say, if Orlando was in dire straits again — and they may be — Jerebko could be the hard-nosed shooter that is needed. Channing Frye surely is not. He might not knock down at the same clip as Frye, but something has to give since Frye offers so little rebounding help.
Next: Haven't we seen you before?
Orlando Magic fans are well versed in what Brandon Bass brings to the table. And if he decided Boston was not the place for him this offseason, there is an outside chance the former LSU Tiger could return to The City Beautiful.
Bass is now 30 years old and will begin to decline most likely, but he should have two or three more very productive years left — if not far more given his commitment to conditioning.
He has never been a guy to put up monstrous numbers. In 23 minutes a night last year, he averaged 10.6 points and 4.9 rebounds. But his energy is always very good. And he is a good mid-range shooter, hitting 45.7 percent from 16 to 22 feet.
Much in the same way Horace Grant was able to camp out at the free throw line extended area, Bass is able to get quality looks on a consistent basis because teams respect his ability to shoot or make a power move to the basket.
Bass has shot 49.3 percent from the floor during his 10-year NBA career, and he is already familiar with Orlando. He came to the Magic on a mid-level exception contract, and it seems he is still worth just about that ($4.5 million).
He may not be “the power forward of the future,” but right now it has to be about fielding a competitive team, and Bass is as hard working as any guy in the league. That attitude could pay dividends in getting his teammates to commit to strong 48-minute wars.
Next: Not full of youth, but ever-so-young
Thaddeus Young has an early termination option this offseason, and there is no reason to think he might not just go ahead and exercise it.
He has bounced around between Minnesota and Brooklyn since leaving the Philadelphia 76ers, but there is little doubt he is still happy not to be a part of the disaster in Philadelphia.
Blue Man Hoop
The Nets are also on the verge of being even further dismantled, and he is either looking at re-signing to be part of another rebuilding effort or taking his talents elsewhere. Young would absolutely start for Orlando, and since he is only 26 this could be a long-term fix potentially for the position.
The question is whether it would be a good enough solution. Young cannot block shots. He is also a mediocre rebounder. But what he does do is stretch the court and his offensive game is not quite as one-dimensional as Channing Frye’s.
Young hit 38 of 115 (33 percent) from three this year, while averaging 13.8 points per game. His contract paid him $9.4 million last year, and he is likely in line for about that same level of deal.
Thaddeus may just remain in Brooklyn, however, if he feels that there is little chance of getting the $9.9 million the Nets would owe him next season from any other team in free agency.
It is tough to say at this point. It is also really difficult to say the Magic would commit to signing him without shedding Channing Frye’s contact first.
Next: A junkyard dog of sorts
Lavoy Allen has yet to become a big-minutes guy. He saw 17 per game this season with the Indiana Pacers, averaging five points and five rebounds per game. However, project those numbers to 36 minutes, and that is a double-double.
At age 25, he could become a reserve Orlando is able to us for seasons to come.
Allen, of course, is not without his shortcomings. He shoots just 47 percent from the floor as a power forward, which would have to improve.
But he would be a bargain-basement option, and there is something to be said for adding a guy who can bring hustle and energy off the bench.
Essentially, he could fill a role similar to what Glen Davis did this year for the Los Angeles Clippers.
Allen made less than $1 million this year, and he has not done anything to indicate he is going to cost much more than that moving forward. Again, these are bargain power forwards, and Allen is a guy who could get the boards the Magic have been lacking for the second unit.
Allen had eight games this past season with 10 rebounds or more, and he had a 12-point, 15-rebound, three-assist effort in a Pacers’ win over the Utah Jazz on Nov. 11.
He could be a guy who simply steps into a role and fills it well, or in a best-case scenario, he develops a lot more and becomes an integral reserve. But simply, there is no reason to turn one’s nose up at a guy who is just 25 and averages a double-double with starter’s minutes.
Next: Once bust, now bargain
Brandan Wright is the only guy of these five options that offers rim protection.
Per-36, he has blocked 2.2 shots during his career, and in the 2015 season with Dallas, he averaged three blocks per-36.
Wright is also capable of putting the ball in the bucket. He averaged 11.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per-36 while shooting an outstanding 58 percent from the floor. For his career, he is shooting 60.6 percent from the field.
Wright is also about to enter his prime at age 27. The Magic could obtain Wright for about half the money they paid Channing Frye last season, as Wright was paid just $5 million last season.
Wright has been a lottery bust thus far. He was taken No. 8 overall in the 2007 draft, but he was never able to add bulk to his body (he is 6-foot-9 and a rail-thin 205 pounds), and he failed to develop his game much beyond dunks. Wright took 51 percent of his shots last year from within three feet, and he took 87 percent of them from 10 feet and in.
So, the Magic would sacrifice floor spacing with Wright on the court, but it would be made up for in having a guy that can run the court and finish hard on breaks.
At his absolute best in his career, he has looked like the lottery pick he once was (let’s hope we are not making this same statement about Aaron Gordon beyond next season).
What is really interesting though? His season-best win share is about the same as Channing Frye’s. And again, he comes at half the price and is entering his prime.
This seems like a winning situation, even if he does not become much more than the middling talent he has been thus far.
Of the five options in this slideshow, Wright is the one guy who still has potential to become a very good player. It is hard to say in light of how mediocre he has been thus far, but sometimes it is just all about being in the right place at the right time.
He has not been on a sustained basis. Maybe he could form some consistency in a Magic uniform.