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Serge Ibaka leads five Orlando Magic players in Sports Illustrated’s top 100

By Philip Rossman-Reich

May 2, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Serge Ibaka (9) shoots the ball against the San Antonio Spurs in game two of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
May 2, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Serge Ibaka (9) shoots the ball against the San Antonio Spurs in game two of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports /
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Serge Ibaka leads five Orlando Magic players named to Sports Illustrated’s top 100 players. The Magic are well-represented but still facing questions.

The NBA season is still two weeks away and the anticipation for the season’s start is beginning to pick up steam. It is time to start thinking NBA again on a national scale.

And the lists have begun in earnest. The league is becoming more and more real. All our questions are close to getting some answers.

Until then, opinions and predictions will have to do. And Sports Illustrated’s annual top 100 list gives a bit of a preview of what the rosters around the NBA might look like.

And, in some ways, it is the first positive sign of what the Orlando Magic have built coming from a national media outlet this entire offseason.

Serge Ibaka leads a league-high five Magic players in the top-100 list, making the Magic one of six teams with five players on the list. Those five teams? All are considered surefire Playoff teams — the Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spurs, Boston Celtics and Utah Jazz.

This is no guarantee the Magic have the right combination of players to make it all work. Whereas those players have players ranked pretty high — Stephen Curry, Kawhi Leonard, Al Horford, Gordon Hayward and LeBron James are in the top 30 (yet to be revealed) — the Magic’s highest ranked player is Ibaka at No. 42.

Orlando certainly seems to have more talent than last year — the team had only two players on the list last year with Tobias Harris and Nikola Vucevic cracking the list. It would seem in a very basic sense, the Magic have improved their talent level.

And, even in the big trade from the summer, the Magic got the best player in Ibaka over Victor Oladipo (No. 74). Albeit a player who has declined. Sports Illustrated had him at No. 25 last year. That is quite the drop.

As Ben Golliver writes, Ibaka will have a larger role than he has ever had and the question remains whether he can fill that role the team needs from him to be successful. The odds are — and ESPN’s CARMELO statistical measure also seem to believe this — Ibaka’s decline may continue.

"When it comes to contract years to keep an eye on, Serge Ibaka’s should be at the top of the list. Dealt to the Magic in a draft day move, the 26-year-old big man is in for a new role, new responsibilities and, perhaps, a new type of scrutiny too. In Orlando, Ibaka should emerge as the team’s leader and best player, especially if he can recover from a disappointing 2015-16 season (12.6 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.9 BPG). But what will that mean for his game? Will he stick to what he’s done best in the past—serving as a release valve by spacing the floor, knocking down open shots and finishing with authority in the basket area—or will Orlando’s lack of A-list talent require that he be more involved as a pick-and-roll finisher or post-up option?"

The other big question is part and parcel to the Ibaka question itself. Four of the five players ranked are going to make up the Magic’s big-man rotation.

Aaron Gordon (No. 99), Bismack Biyombo (No. 91) and Nikola Vucevic (No. 75) are also on the list complete with their own questions and promise. Evan Fournier rounds out the Magic’s representation at No. 95.

Sorting out that front-court rotation is going to be a recurring theme throughout the season.

Biyombo is going to be cashing in on his elite defensive skill. Vucevic is looking to prove he is not merely putting up empty stats for a losing team. And Gordon is seeking his way to blossom.

These are big questions the Magic will spend time answering.

Orlando has some talented players. But that talent is still finding its role. And, more importantly, finding its fit together.

The Magic are more talented and have some good players. Unlike those other teams with so many top-30 players, but not any top-flight players. That is perhaps the biggest challenge facing Frank Vogel and the Magic this year. They will have to find a way to win without the top-end talent Playoff teams have.

Next: Locked on Magic: State of Sunshine State Hoops

One thing seems certain. The Magic do have some more talent and some reason to be optimistic more so than the previous years. How the pieces fit together will determine whether that talent cashes in for them.