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Orlando Magic Daily Mailbag Volume 10: Young, exciting . . . more questions

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Mar 18, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo (5) dunks in the third quarter shoots against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. The Mavs beat the Magic 107-102. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 18, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo (5) dunks in the third quarter shoots against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. The Mavs beat the Magic 107-102. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /
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From Jim via e-mail:

"How safe is Rob Hennigan’s job ?…Magic have the worst record in the NBA last 3 seasons…wondering how another 25-30 win season would be perceived ? At Elfrid Payton’s current shooting percentages was wondering if you could name any NBA team to win a Championship with a PG that shoots that poorly ? Will this roster as currently constructed make the playoffs this coming season ? Are you worried about this roster in that the only guy close to being a rim-protector doesn’t fit playing next to Vucevic ?"

Rob Hennigan’s job is safe. For now.

The Magic knew this rebuild plan of his was going to be a long-term one and they have largely gone according to plan. The only thing that has not really cooperated are the things outside of the team’s control — the Draft Lottery.

The Jacque Vaughn hiring accomplished what it needed to accomplish for two years. Last year, it did not take the step forward and that was that.

That was probably not something they hoped would happen, but had to be part of the calculus in making this rebuild plan. The Magic just wanted to spend the first two or three years building a core and spend year three and four starting to get to winning.

If the Magic do not show significant improvement this season, pressure will start to build. But the Magic did not extend Rob Hennigan this summer imagining he would only get one more year. The plan might have to accelerate if things do not continue to improve this season.

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That does not mean Hennigan has been above reproach. You are not the first person to ask about Payton and his suspect shooting.

I think Payton does continue to improve his field goal percentage and that he does become a better shooter. But to answer your question, Mario Chalmers shot 44.8 percent in 2012 but had an effective field goal percentage greater than 50 percent and Jason Kidd shot worse than Payton at 36.1 percent in 2011. So it can and has been done.

And, again, Payton is likely to make some improvements to his jumper. Despite his playing three years in college, he can certainly become a smarter and more efficient shooter. Look at Kidd as an example.

For sure, though, it is going to take a development like Payton’s jumper to get to the Playoffs. I detailed this a little bit more in the previous edition of the mailbag the long odds in making the Playoffs. There are a lot of teams that seemingly are comfortably in the Playoffs and a whole bunch fighting for one or two spots.

The Magic should consider themselves among those, but it is going to have to take a young team maturing and taking the next step and then that team clicking with a new coach demanding a bit more from them.

The rim protection is an issue for sure. But I do not think it is a killer one. You just need to be able to defend at the rim or prevent paint shots. Scott Skiles is a great defensive tactician. I do not think he is married to a particular style or demands a certain type of player. He will work with Vucevic and do his best to hide his deficiencies so his team can succeed.

I am going to be a little more skeptical that the stars will perfectly align for this team, although I expect the team to still be significantly better than last year’s 25-win outfit even with minor roster changes.

As for when the Magic go after free agents? We saw them do that this summer with their pursuit of Paul Millsap. What the team likely discovered is that free agents are not going to jump ship and buy into this rebuild until they give them a reason to join.

The Magic are not there yet. So Orlando has to wait for some of the talent on the roster to prove they are worth joining before making a big splash in free agency.

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