Orlando Magic Daily
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2017 Central Florida 85 Nos. 51-68: Big Expectations

By Philip Rossman-Reich

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - April 23: Giles Barnes #14 of Orlando City SC in action during the New York City FC Vs Orlando City SC regular season MLS game at Yankee Stadium on April 23, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - April 23: Giles Barnes #14 of Orlando City SC in action during the New York City FC Vs Orlando City SC regular season MLS game at Yankee Stadium on April 23, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images) /
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Bismack Biyombo, Orlando magic, LA Clippers
The Orlando Magic’s Bismack Biyombo (11) tries to get the ball from the Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin, right, at the Amway Center in Orlando, Fla., on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/TNS via Getty Images) /

68. Bismack Biyombo, Orlando Magic

There are a lot of players on the Orlando Magic that fans have targeted for a trade or a move of some sort. After a 29-win season that promised to deliver the Playoffs after a four-year absence, the Magic are a bit antsy to find a future. That explains the management change that seemed inevitable all offseason.

Eventually, it seems they will get to the roster itself and begin reshaping the team to put it in a better position to win. And that may one day reach one player who everyone seemed to believe was a mistake from the moment he signed.

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It is not Bismack Biyombo’s fault his contract hangs around his and his team’s neck like an albatross. He did what he was supposed to do, play himself into the best deal he could get. At $17 million per year for the next three years, Biyombo is going to reap the benefits of his agent’s negotiations and his play before then (mostly his 2016 Playoff performance).

Biyombo is not going anywhere and that narrative about his salary — overpaid or not — will not go away. Not this year and probably not until he departs the team.

Biyombo’s first season with the Magic was a disappointment — 6.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game with 1.1 blocks per game. Biyombo is not the kind of player to put up a ton of points or make a big statistical impact. But his defensive impact was also blunted.

Maybe Biyombo simply did not fit like so many in the Magic. He had a career-low block rate this year, despite his stats staying fairly stagnant across the board from his last year with the Toronto Raptors.

The one thing that is clear is Biyombo will be part of the narrative for the team moving forward. He may never live up to that big contract he signed last year. For now, he will remain the highest paid player on the team. But whatever the Magic can get from him will be a boost.