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Orlando Magic ranked 21st in ESPN’s Future Power Rankings

By Philip Rossman-Reich

BOSTON, MA - JANUARY 27: Elfrid Payton #4 of the Orlando Magic looks to pass against the Boston Celtics on January 27, 2017 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Steve Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - JANUARY 27: Elfrid Payton #4 of the Orlando Magic looks to pass against the Boston Celtics on January 27, 2017 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Steve Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The Orlando Magic’s future is in flux as they transition to a new management group. The outlook, according to ESPN is not looking great for the franchise.

The Orlando Magic are in a tough spot as a franchise.

The team undertook a long rebuilding program five years ago but failed to come out of it with a clear path forward. They never won the Lottery. Many of their draft picks did not pan out the way they hoped. And when the team pushed all in — trading their young players for veterans and pushing in for free agency — they came out losers.

The team’s 29-win season was a disaster in just about every way. The Magic sacrificed a lot of their future assets to try to make that playoff run in 2017. The team’s failure is something they are still recovering from.

They picked up a promising young asset in Jonathan Isaac, but the team is still short on promising young prospects and cap room to go find improvements. That was proven as much as anything this summer when president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman had to work largely on the margins with a limited amount of cap space.

Orlando is not expected to come into cap room again until at least 2020. And that does not account for the uncertain contract futures for Aaron Gordon and Elfrid Payton. The Magic could eat into that potential cap space quickly.

It all leads to uncertainty in the next three years on how this team will develop. And, for now, the certainty that this team is going to see very few changes. At least for the moment.

It makes sense then the national media is not seeing much of a future.

In ESPN Insider’s annual ranking of the team’s future (for the next three years), the Magic came in at No. 21. The Magic are indeed still near the bottom of the league, and there does not seem to be a quick or easy way out.

"Unfortunately, a series of lottery picks has yet to yield star talent, though Aaron Gordon and Elfrid Payton both showed promise in the second half of last season. Worse yet, new contracts for Gordon and Payton — both restricted free agents next summer if they don’t agree to extensions before the start of the regular season — will likely take Orlando over the cap for the foreseeable future. So even if the Magic do return to the playoffs at some point in the next three years, the ceiling for this group appears limited."

To show just how far the team has fallen, the Magic were 16th in the same poll last year. That is not the most optimistic look, but the team failed to meet those expectations.

Indeed, it is hard to argue with Kevin Pelton’s analysis. The debate among Magic fans about going for the Playoffs or going through another rebuilding process centers on just how high the team’s ceiling can be. It certainly seems this current group does not have anywhere near a championship ceiling.

That seems inarguable.

The question facing the Magic is to figure out just how much value short-term winning has. There is definitely value in going to the Playoffs, even in the first round, for the development it would bring. A Playoff berth at this point likely means Gordon and Payton improved, or the team had some other internal improvement to get there.

Such growth might change the Magic’s overall outlook for the long term. It could mean the team has more tradeable assets and young players who can still grow and reach their potential. But it would also affect the team’s ability to get more quality players through the Draft.

These are all storylines the Magic will be following this year as they evaluate where they go next.

As for now, ESPN’s panel ranked the Magic’s players 21st in the league and their new management group 17th. About the only thing the team has going for it is its Draft stash, eighth in the league.

Certainly winning in the short term would lower that draft potential. Orlando’s best bet to get better players may still be the draft. Even if the team is not a candidate at the beginning of the season to out and out tank.

The franchise’s future is still very much in the air. The Magic have a lot of things to work through and figure out before they find a path forward.

Next: 2018 Orlando Magic Player Outlook: Shelvin Mack

ESPN’s future power rankings show that as clearly as anything else.