The Orlando Magic are in Las Vegas this week preparing for Summer League to begin Friday. The results may not matter, but there is still a lot to learn.
NBA free agency takes up a lot of oxygen this time of the year. There has been a flurry of surprising and shocking news — LeBron James heading to the Los Angeles Lakers was only topped with DeMarcus Cousins taking the taxpayer mid-level exception to join the Golden State Warriors.
The Orlando Magic have made their own free agent move in keeping Aaron Gordon. But this team will have a lot more of its focus on the growth and development internally. There are not a lot of avenues to get a good look at the team until they all convene for training camp in late September.
The team’s trip to Las Vegas for Summer League this week will give some instruction.
Jonathan Isaac, Mohamed Bamba, Wesley Iwundu, Khem Birch and Rodney Purvis headline a team that is loaded with roster talent. That does not even get into the Magic’s second-round picks in Melvin Frazier and Justin Jackson.
There are a lot of players to watch and analyze in the five games the team will play at UNLV starting Friday at 5 p.m. ET against the Brooklyn Nets. The other two games the Magic have in round robin play include Mohamed Bamba taking on Jaren Jackson Jr. and the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday and Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns on Monday.
Orlando will get a lot of information about its rookie. But the team will also get a look at Jonathan Isaac’s development. And this will mark Steve Clifford and his staff’s first chance to install a little bit of their offense and their philosophy.
This is what Summer League is about. Gaining some early information. The play on the court is not super important — it is nice to win. But you learn more about who cannot play rather than who can play.
Still, several players will have a lot on the line. Especially elsewhere on the Magic’s roster. Orlando is likely looking to fill the Lakeland Magic’s roster and add a few two-way players too. Several players on this Summer League roster could be in line for that.
So what should we watch for as the Magic arrive in Las Vegas and begin practicing Tuesday? It turns out there is plenty.
Jonathan Isaac’s progress
Probably the biggest thing the Orlando Magic want to see is just how much Jonathan Isaac has progressed since the season ended in April.
It is a common trope that players make their biggest improvements from their rookie season to their second season. Here they know the rigors of the NBA game and exactly what it will take to make it through an entire season. The basic flaws in their game are exposed. And, now, for the first time, they have a full summer as a pro to improve and expand their game.
Isaac’s game was pretty basic last year. He did not do a ton offensively last year, limited to hitting spot-up jumpers and running in transition. That was partly because of the ankle injury that slowed him down.
His main role was on defense. He quickly became one of the team’s best overall perimeter defenders. Even though he made plenty of rookie mistakes, his length and instincts allowed him to recover. As the Magic grow defensively, Isaac should shine more.
But this summer is about developing the other parts of his game. The Magic want to see him add some strength — he is already on muscle watch and appears to have put on some considerable muscle to his slight frame. And then use that strength to create actual basketball skills.
Orlando certainly wants to see Isaac be the team’s top scorer for however many games he ends up playing. That would be a sure sign that he has expanded his offensive game. If he can do so efficiently, even better.
Isaac’s progress is the biggest piece of Summer League though.
Orlando still has little sense of where he fits with this team and what his role could be. If he shines in Summer League then they know he is ready to start at small forward. If he does not, then the team will have to continue slow playing his development.
Mohamed Bamba’s impact
After Jonathan Isaac, no player will have more eyes on him than Mohamed Bamba.
That is what happens every Summer League. Everyone wants to see how the rookies perform in their first professional exposure. And Bamba will have plenty of chances to shine.
The Magic’s second and third games of the minimum five they will play will come against two of the best post players from the previous draft. The Orlando Magic take on Jaren Jackson Jr. and the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday in the team’s second game. Then the Orlando Magic play top overall pick Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns in Monday’s game.
At the very least then, the Magic will know where Bamba stacks up against the other bigs in his class. That could be important and instructive.
But really, the Magic are probably just hoping to throw Bamba out there and see exactly where he is and what he can do. There may not be a way for him to fail. Unless he provides zero impact defensively which seems highly unlikely considering how good he was in college.
The most interesting thing to watch from Bamba this Summer League is just how much his jumper and offensive game have developed.
Throughout his pre-Draft media blitz, Bamba showed off workout film of him shooting jumpers. His form looked a whole lot more improved. And the seemed like he was more comfortable stepping out beyond the 3-point line. No one really knows if that will actually translate to gameplay.
This is his chance to show just how much he has developed.
Orlando is likely to take things slow with Bamba in his rookie year. The Magic are not going to throw him to the fire or rely on him to be the team’s leading scorer.
Defensive anchor? Probably. But not the main cog. Offensive expectations for him? Probably very few at this point — outside of offensive rebounds and putbacks.
The Magic right now just want to see where he is at and make sure he can hold his own as they build him up toward the regular season.
G-League stalwarts fighting for their spot on the roster
There are three players on the Orlando Magic main roster that spent significant time in the G-League that will rejoin the Summer League team. Wesley Iwundu, Rodney Purvis and Khem Birch should feel pretty safe about making it to training camp with the Magic. Whether they go beyond that is the bigger question.
None of that is going to get determined in this week in Vegas. These games and practices will not erase any goodwill they might have with the organization. Although the team has a new coaching staff so maybe they are all back to square one.
The focus here will go more on Birch and Purvis.
Birch had a strong showing in his limited minutes for the Magic last year, but he found himself buried in the depth chart. According to Basketball-Reference, Birch played 47 percent of his minutes at power forward.
Birch probably is not really a power forward. Not unless he develops a jumper. And, until the Magic make some trades and change the roster, he again finds himself stuck in a logjam at center.
He will have to show an improved feel on the offensive end to push through that logjam. All while providing that typically reliable defense.
Birch has a couple roles to fill in this Summer League. Not only is he playing for himself to try to push his way into the rotation in some way. But he also should provide a good challenge defensively for Mohamed Bamba in practice.
Birch is a perfect switching big for the modern NBA with his understanding of positioning in the pick and roll. Somehow the Magic have to play him.
Purvis too had a strong showing in the G-League for the Lakeland Magic, leading them in scoring with 20.5 points per game. He had the freedom in Lakeland to shoot a lot and he showed an improved 3-point shooting stroke.
That did not translate into his short stint with the Magic to end last season. He averaged only 6.0 points per game on 32.7 percent shooting and 25.0 percent from beyond the arc. Purvis had limited minutes — 290 minutes in 16 games — so that is hardly a sample size to give up on him. His work in Lakeland all year suggests he can play a lot better.
But the Magic need to see that.
Purvis will get to training camp for sure. But his contract is non-guaranteed for next year. He has to prove himself capable of playing at the NBA level. If Purvis wants a clearer future with the team, he has to play well in Summer League.
He should get plenty of touches and shots to do so. Expect Purvis to play in all five games. As Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamba get shut down, Purvis should get plenty of opportunity to play like he did in Lakeland to put up some numbers.
Steve Clifford’s basic sets
With so little time and so few players familiar with each other playing together, there is not the chance to install a ton of sets and plays. There really is not much time to do anything than cover the basics.
But whenever there is a new coaching staff, there is always some interest in Summer League to see what kind of philosophy and roots they put down in Summer League.
Summer League playbooks are usually watered down versions of what they will run during the regular season. There are some basic philosophies and rules implemented on defense too. It is a small slice of the pie of what the team will look like tactically moving forward.
Whenever there is a new coaching staff in place, everyone gets intrigued to see what the team will look like. Even in this very basic way.
Steve Clifford will not be coaching the Summer League team. His newly installed staff will take care of the Summer League roster. But they will begin implementing the culture and the style the team will eventually play. Again, in a very basic way.
How the Magic play and what they try to do on this base level will be something Magic fans will certainly want to watch.
Clifford made a name for himself with his Charlotte Hornets teams for playing a very specific way. They were disciplined on both offense and defense, limited turnovers and protected the paint well.
How much of that can translate in Summer League? Probably not all of it. Probably not most of it.
But two key defensive figures are there. The Magic may give clues on how they want to play defense with Mohamed Bamba and Jonathan Isaac through their play in Summer League. How they set them up to succeed will be interesting to watch.
Troy Caupain‘s two-way fight
Arguably the Lakeland Magic’s best player last year was converted point guard Troy Caupain. He averaged 15.6 points per game and 5.8 assists per game while shooting 34.7 percent from beyond the arc. Like his teammate Rodney Purvis, he was a bit of a volume scorer, but he had plenty of strong performances.
When the Magic were searching around for 10-day contracts and potential G-League call-ups late in the season, everyone believed Caupain would be that guy. He had played so well at Lakeland and the team seemingly needed a third point guard with just D.J. Augustin and Shelvin Mack remaining on the roster.
Caupain ended up finishing the year in Lakeland without a call-up.
That chance to make the main roster appears to be on the horizon. Caupain seems to have some inside track at possibly getting a two-way contract this year. And with Orlando likely needing a third point guard — in addition to a starting point guard — Caupain fills a need if the Magic are looking to add a training camp invitee to the roster.
That is a huge opportunity for the second-year player. He is someone the organization is familiar with who has produced within their system — albeit the previous coach — and had a relationship with the organization.
Caupain is the exact kind of player the Magic would take this risk on too. He is listed at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds. Caupain is a big strong guard with decent length — not overwhelming length by any means though.
He has good defensive potential, but that is unclear. And obviously, his offensive game is a bit more developed. Caupain still has to develop his point guard skills. He is still probably more of an off guard. But that kind of versatility is fine in a guy who is going to play at the end of the bench.
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Summer League will be a big opportunity for the team to learn a lot about its roster. The results to the games may not matter and it is not fully dispositive. But the Magic will get a lot out of the next week in Las Vegas one way or the other.