Confidence remains high in architects of Orlando Magic’s rebuild

The Orlando Magic are getting set to embark on a massive rebuild. It will be a long road ahead. But faith remains that Jeff Weltman can lead them out.

The pressure is now squarely on Orlando Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman.

That comes part and parcel with the job he undertook as president of basketball operations. Every decision he makes will either help his organization succeed or send it further into oblivion. Some bigger than others.

Weltman was almost in a holding position last summer after his hire as president of basketball operations where he simply did not want to make things worse. His “evaluation” year was simply to let contracts flip over and see exactly where the team was in its progression to contention.

Injuries might have prevented the team from hitting its true potential. But the Magic certainly were not where anyone thought they were. The team’s 25-win season suggested the team is a long way away. Weltman will have his work cut out for him with his first big decision coming in this draft.

There is plenty of work to do. And the Magic seem like a long way from the Playoffs. Thus a major roster shift seems in the offing for Weltman and the franchise.

Despite all the team’s struggles, there was still a surprising amount of optimism around the building during exit interviews. A surprising amount of faith in the new front office to build things around. It was honestly the only sign of optimism after a difficult season.

Everyone seemed more than hopeful about the future.

"“I’m pretty confident,” Bismack Biyombo said during exit interviews. “I think I can sit here and talk a lot about him, but we are all really going to have to wait and see how this summer plays out. The one thing I do know is he is a winner and he wants to win. This is one of his first years really losing form the past years. I’m excited about this summer. I’m mostly looking forward to seeing what happens.”"

Bismack Biyombo has more experience than most working with Jeff Weltman from his time with the Toronto Raptors. He seemed legitimately excited for what Weltman could build.

That is not the only person saying or thinking that.

Last week in a conversation with Ian Begley of ESPN New York about the David Fizdale hire on the Woj Pod, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com went out of his way to compliment the Magic’s position. He said when things are right in Orlando it is a place players want to play and the front office team of Jeff Weltman and John Hammond are well thought of around the league.

It would seem, at least, in his estimation, the team has a strong base to build from at the executive level.

Indeed, Weltman and Hammond have gone about reshaping the Magic’s front office and basketball operations staff. The team is starting to reform itself and take those steps forward.

This offseason will test the organization too. Finding a way forward will be difficult without much cap room. The team will only have the draft and the trade market to improve the team.

But there seems to be overall confidence that they will find a way to turn things around.

"“Jeff is going to apply a winning culture,” Terrence Ross said. “When he breaks things down, heis just doing it to get us in the right direction and point us in the direction we need to go. I have faith. These are the basic blocks you have to go to where you need to be.”"

Terrence Ross, who along with Bismack Biyombo played for the Raptors while Jeff Weltman was on the team’s front office staff, said Weltman is the kind of guy who does whatever his players or his team need. Ross said Weltman does not give up and goes the extra mile for his organization.

He said Weltman is someone players can go to and rely on to help them get where they need to be within the team context. That notion of Weltman’s approachability is one everyone in the organization seems to speak highly of.

This is one of the reasons Ross, and several other players have faith in him to lead the organization.

There is still a long road ahead for the Magic still. The team has a lot of building to do. And the changes in the support staff at the Amway Center are a start. There is still a lot to do.

The players will have to do their work too obviously. The front office will make its work to change the roster. But the team will go as far as individual players — especially Aaron Gordon and Jonathan Isaac — improve.

As Ross said, they have to worry about improving day-to-day. That could go for the front office too.

There is lots of work to do this summer. Fans have had little to grasp onto. And they have had little hope from the last six years. Their skepticism is understandable.

But within the organization, there is faith Weltman and Hammond will be the ones to turn things around. They have at least earned the benefit of the doubt for time served. They have not yet sunk their teeth into this team.

"“There is a lot of things that we need to do before we become a winning culture that wins year in and year out,” Aaron Gordon said. “We’re on the right page. We need to get like-minded people here. People like John and Jeff are doing a great job figuring out exactly what we need. If we stay the course and keep the consistency, then you start to win. It tips over and eventually you look up and we’re a 50-win team and we’re in the Playoffs. It takes time, it takes a concerted effort and just efficiency.”"

Time may be the one thing fans do not want to hear about right now. But time is what this group needs. It will soon be time to judge Weltman and Hammond in their decisionmaking. Especially now that they are getting set to put their fingerprints on this team.

Next: Devising Orlando Magic's trade strategy

Faith remains strong they will put the team in the right direction.