What To Look For
From 2013-14, Arron Afflalo had two of the best seasons of his career and nearly pushed for a spot on the Eastern Conference All-Star Team. If not for the Magic’s poor record, he might have made it. That is the other element to that selection.
Those two years, Afflalo averaged 17.4 points per game on an efficient 50.2 percent effective field goal percentage. It was especially impressive considering the team he was on — he was the best, most veteran player on a young rebuilding team.
He has spent the last three years trying to recapture that, albeit in a smaller role. Afflalo has seen his usage decrease, but he averaged just 11.7 points per game with a 49.9 percent effective field goal percentage since then. He has struggled to find the same consistency in his role, often bouncing from the bench to starting to supporting to having the ball in his hands.
Afflalo seemed to hint he was a bit unhappy with his situations since leaving the Magic. He did not re-spark his play in a homecoming with the Denver Nuggets after the Orlando Magic traded him for Evan Fournier. He struggled to get consistency with the New York Knicks.
Last year with the Sacramento Kings, he was fine, averaging 8.4 points per game and shooting a 51.4 percent effective field goal percentage, including 41.1 percent from beyond the arc. Afflalo was a part-time starter last year and played 25.9 minutes per game. His production was fine, but it was clear there was still something off.
The Magic are not likely to put Afflalo on the ball very much. He is not going to be the high-usage player he was with the Magic in the first stint with the team. And Afflalo still seems in the process of evolving his game.
He uses less of those mid-post isolations he had with his first run and more of his spot-up 3-point game. It has slowly improved. But he has not reached the 42.7 percent from beyond the arc he had his final year in Orlando. He is not a perfect pure spot-up shooter. It is unclear how much the Magic might involve him in their offense.
He has averaged 3-4 3-point attempts per game until last year. That might account for his increase in efficiency.
Still, Afflalo is probably one of the more consistent offensive options the Magic have overall. He has proven himself to be capable of creating his own shot on occasion. Orlando will likely rely on him at least to start the season to provide balance and stability to the bench lineup.
He will not hit the highs he hit in his first stint with the Magic, but Afflalo certainly can still make a major contribution.