Orlando Magic Position-by-Position Outlook
The Point Guards
No position probably was under more scrutiny or attention last year than the point guard position for the Orlando Magic. Certainly after the season ended too.
After his rookie year, Elfrid Payton seemingly established himself as the somewhat flawed but still promising future of the franchise at this all-important position.
He seemed like he could possibly become a triple-double machine. With his length and athleticism, he could be a strong defender. He just had to reel in that pesky shot.
Payton through struggled in his second year. Something did not click. His scoring numbers and shooting numbers improved but everything else stayed relatively flat. His defensive numbers shrank.
The summer found more turmoil. It seemed he clashed with coach Scott Skiles and there was a bit of a showdown over him and his future. The Magic came out of that more invested in Payton than before. Orlando is banking on him becoming a reliable point guard option in his third year.
The Magic entered the offseason knowing they needed to improve their point guard depth. A continuing story throughout last season was the Magic’s lack of point guard depth after C.J. Watson went down and Payton struggled with injury. Orlando was searching for help at point guard. Payton had to play through it and clearly had lost a step.
The Magic solved much of that problem with one of their first free-agent signings.
D.J. Augustin has made a long career in the NBA as a spot starter. He is a quality player who should fit in as a solid backup. Augustin can provide shooting and playmaking.
He will do plenty to push Payton in practice, without actually challenging him for the starting role. Augustin is not a strong defender and probably is not going to help a winning team as a starting point guard.
If that does not work, the Magic can turn to their supposed backup point guard from last year in C.J. Watson.
Watson too is a very capable backup. He just never got the chance to show it last year. Watson missed the majority of the season with a mysterious calf strain. When he finally returned, Watson had to deal with Brandon Jennings in the lineup.
When healthy, Watson is a good shooter and solid, versatile guard player. That should have some benefit for the Magic bench whether he gets minutes or has to fill in when the team goes through a rough patch or faces injuries.