Orlando Magic should pursue D’Angelo Russell in free agency

If the Orlando Magic are looking to taking the next step toward success, they should focus on acquiring Brooklyn Nets guard D’Angelo Russell in free agency.

The Orlando Magic won a game against the 2019 NBA Champion Toronto Raptors to complete a breakthrough season. No one expected the team to get to this point, let alone win 42 games and the Southeast Division.

The best question is to ask: What next?

This is a team with clear weaknesses. The Magic struggled to create their own shots in the playoff series as the Raptors swarmed Nikola Vucevic over and over again. Orlando’s flaws were laid bare despite a solid defensive effort. The Magic could not generate any shots.

To take that next step from seventh seed to potentially a top-four seed, the Magic will need to bring in more offensive firepower this offseason for their roster.

The Magic should look no further than Brooklyn Nets restricted free agent D’Angelo Russell. Out of all the potential talent that will be available on the market, Russell seems to be the most likely to go to a team like Orlando and would fill a desperate need for the team.

Last year, Russell made his first All-Star team while averaging 21.1 points per game, 3.9 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game. Not too shabby for a guy that is only 22-years-old.

This is the type of player who can fill one of the team’s needs for scoring and allow a young group of players to develop with All-Star type of veteran.

This is just one piece to the puzzle.

The Magic would have to continue to develop its players in order to build around a player like this but Russell is a willing passer and can thread the needle with his dimes. He can create shots on his own, scoring 0.8 points per possession on isolation plays last year on roughly two attempts per game. Russell is also effective in pick and rolls and can even work off the ball as a spot-up shooter.

The Nets often played D’Angelo Russell alongside a secondary ball handler like Spencer Dinwiddie. That would suggest D’Angelo Russell would not necessarily impede development for a player like Markelle Fultz.

And Magic fans should be well aware of Russell’s late-game chops with how he delivered wins for the Nets in two games against them this season.

With the Nets seemingly in line to let D’Angelo Russell go — even releasing him from restricted free agency — as they chase bigger stars like Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, the Magic will have to move quickly if they want to sign him.

Not to mention the Magic would have to do some maneuvering in order to sign him. To get to the cap room to sign a player like D’Angelo Russell, the Magic likely would have to renounce the free agent rights to both Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross and stretch Timofey Mozgov‘s final year of his contract.

It is a steep price. And, at least for the moment, president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said retaining Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross are the team’s biggest priorities in free agency.

The Magic though are in prime position to take a risk like this. Especially for a player who fits their age timeline.

Without Russell, the Magic were able to steal a game against the 2019 NBA Champs and bring a lot of optimism to a franchise that had not seen the Playoffs in seven seasons.

A blockbuster move like acquiring Russell would give a sense of credibility back to free agents looking for a place to make a home, now they can look to Central Florida.

Russell could blossom in Orlando, with the keys to the offense in his pocket. He would immediately be the number one option in Central Florida, more so than with the Nets because they have Dinwiddie who averaged 16.8 points per game and 4.6 assists per game. And certainly, the Nets seem to be casting for bigger fish this summer.

The buzzer-beating shot that D.J. Augustin hit against the Raptors is exactly the type of shot Russell could bring to the team. He’s a player who isn’t afraid of big moments and can hit clutch jumpers in isolated sets.

In clutch situations in the 2019 season, Russell was 23rd in the league averaging 3.1 points per game and hitting on 45.2 percent of his shots. His ability to hit 3-pointers and get to the basket proved valuable in these tense moments throughout the season.

This is a player that can close games for the Magic and create his own shot. The Magic have not had a perimeter closer this good since Tracy McGrady wore number one.

Adding Russell to the team would mark the most dramatic improvement the team could make to the roster, giving it a scorer the franchise has not seen in more than a decade. It would help take the team to another level and help it take its next step — even at the steep cost it would come with for the short-term.

As the Magic begin to assess what they must do this summer. Russell should be near the top of the list.