Nikola Vucevic too valuable for Orlando Magic to trade right now

Mohamed Bamba‘s strong play has Orlando Magic fans clamoring for the team to move on. But Nikola Vucevic is proving himself too valuable to let go.

Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic is playing lights out basketball this preseason.

The mild-mannered 7-footer has scored 20-plus points in all three of the Magic’s preseason games this season, averaging 21.0 points per game on a 52.9 percent effective field goal percentage. That he has been the most consistent Orlando player so far comes as no surprise.

It has been what he has done throughout his entire career with the Magic. Vucevic has been a constant for the team the last six years with averages of 16.0 points and 10.4 rebounds per game with 50 percent shooting from the field.

But that has obviously not been enough. Through those six years on the team, the Magic have failed to make the Playoffs. They have failed to win more than 35 games even. And throughout that time Vucevic’s status on the team has been uncertain at best.

Trade rumors constantly pop up involving Vucevic — especially in the last two years. The Magic’s front office has never pulled the trigger on a deal but it feels like more than ever the team is focusing on the future.

Orlando fans thought Nikola Vucevic was on the move for sure when the team selected Mohamed Bamba with the sixth pick of last summers’ draft. The tema has often brought in other centers that seemed to have some notion of replacing Vucevic in the starting lineup, but none were able to beat him out.

It seems like with a rookie playing the same position and Vucevic’s contract expiring, that it would be likely Vucevic would be on the move. That may still be possible, especially as the trade deadline approaches in February. But Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman quickly said before the season they wanted to keep Nikola Vucevic around while the rookie Mohamed Bamba develops.

"“We have no designs on trading anyone right now,” Weltman said during media day. “That’s something that we’ll worry about later. Vuc is a high-quality player and an even higher quality person. He’s very valuable to our team today, and he’s very valuable to what we want to be about going forward. So, I wouldn’t even entertain those thoughts yet.”"

This is an early stage of the season. Not many teams are entertaining tinkering with their roster before the season starts. The Magic appear to be keeping Vucevic for the time being and for good reason.

Bamba, as impressive as he has been through three preseason games, is not ready yet to start at the center position. He is still underdeveloped physically to bang around with opposing centers for 82 games.

Bamba has shown tons of potential this preseason and has looked really good, but he might be better off playing more at the power forward position or coming off the bench in limited minutes until he gets bigger.

The Magic need Vucevic to start at the center position. Head coach Steve Clifford has started to play Mohamed Bamba and Nikola Vucevic together. The combination has looked surprisingly good. Bamba has the athleticism and shooting ability to play power forward while Vucevic provides a consistent offensive option and defensive understanding — if not always the impact.

More importantly, Vucevic has volunteered his time to take Bamba under his wing.

Even through summer workouts and early training camp, Vucevic said he tried to pull Bamba aside and give him tips and things to look out for ahead of his first training camp and first game.

Vucevic said he views Bamba not as the competition or as a replacement, but as a teammate. And for the team to do well, the team needs Bamba at his best.

Bamba has also spoken to John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com about Vucevic’s influence on him early on in his career.

The future clearly seems to belong to Bamba. The Magic would not have invested a top pick in him if they did not view him as a key player.

Orlando Magic

Clifford said the whole experiment of playing Vucevic and Bamba together is about making sure the Magic play their best players. Even if that means trying out funky lineups. Bamba is quickly taking his place in the lineup.

But Vucevic is not giving up that spot. He has looked to be in top form so far and could have his best season as a pro barring injury. He was playing the best basketball of his career last season before breaking his hand. Vucevic now has now added the 3-point shot to his game and continues to improve defensively.

Clifford has spoken highly of Vucevic throughout camp too. He said the league knows Vucevic’s value and often puts him at the top of their scouting reports because of everything Vucevic can do offensively as a shooter and a passer.

The Magic have played a lot of their offense through Vucevic whether in the post or in the high post. Orlando has relied on his passing and his shooting to space the floor.

There may come the time when the team has to make a decision on him. It seems inevitable that it will happen in February. If it does not happen then, it must happen in July when Vucevic hits free agency.

But the Magic cannot afford to trade Vucevic right now. The team needs his scoring, leadership and veteran presence to make a push for the playoffs this season and even to help Bamba grow as a young player.

Philip Rossman-Reich contributed to this report.