The Orlando Magic have several big decisions to make this offseason to determine the direction of the team, including on the future of Nikola Vucevic.
Nikola Vucevic has been the Orlando Magic’s best player and number one option on offense under Steve Clifford, making the All-Star game in 2019 while averaging 20.8 points per game. Despite failing to make back-to-back All-Star games, his 19.6 points and 10.9 rebounds per game helped Orlando reach the playoffs again last season.
The 30-year-old has been the focal point on a flawed offense, demonstrating his ability by dragging the Magic to a surprise Game 1 win over the Milwaukee Bucks in last season’s playoffs with a monster 35-point performance. He averaged 28 points per game during the series, redeeming himself from a poor 2019 playoff debut.
He is a prime example of a modern center and has been a fantastic player for the Magic.
But following two straight years of first-round exits, Orlando needs to find a way forward. Nikola Vucevic is not blessed with the gift of youth. And his game does not perfectly fit the Magic’s desire to play more up-tempo and more focused on defense.
After his stellar postseason, his trade value is high and he could play a big role on a contending team.
The front office must either put the right talent around him or move in a new direction. Trading away Vucevic would signal a reset for the franchise and comes with significant risk given he was the team’s first All-Star since Dwight Howard.
Orlando also drafted a promising young center in Mohamed Bamba in 2018 who has seen his game time and development limited so far. This is not all down to or the fault of Vucevic who has dominated the minutes at the 5-spot. But Bamba needs more time on the court to grow. He needs a clearer pathway to minutes.
The Magic just need to be a better team overall. And Vucevic is still their best player on that front.
With Vucevic having reached his peak and the team seemingly stuck in a low playoff spot, the Magic could use his trade value to take the team forward. But it may not be all that easy to do.
The potential problems
Nikola Vucevic has three years left on his current contract at $26 million next season followed by $24 million and then $22 million. Whichever team Vucevic is traded to would need the cap space and have to be completely sold on the impact he would have.
For the Magic, it means they would have to acquire a player or players that equate to the value of his contract since the team is currently over the salary cap. The front office might have to commit big to another player or take on a few sizable contracts which could be difficult to shift.
Players on Vucevic’s salary that are both worth trading for and on the market are not exactly common. It is all very well working on the basis of trading Vucevic for a player you think will take the team to the next level but this might not be possible.
Orlando could instead decide to focus on picks as the point of the trade and build for the future. But the difficulty of acquiring assets to the extent of Vucevic’s contract still remains, while there is no guarantee of success through the draft.
The front office could use Vucevic to try and acquire a high draft pick in this year’s draft. But there are serious doubts over the quality and potential of the class while trading for future picks is a risky strategy that comes with lots of uncertainty.
Vucevic is a very good player, but he is not the multiple-time All-Star teams might want for his kind of money. He does a lot of things well including shooting the ball, averaging a respectable 33.9-percent from three, and he is one of the league’s best passing big men with an average of 3.6 assists per game. His rebound numbers are also solid.
But despite his talent as a multi-skilled center, Vucevic is not known for his defensive ability despite his steady improvement with age. He is not in the league’s top tier of players but his ability to score and stretch the floor is a huge asset in today’s NBA. The question is whether that is enough to get the Magic the sort of trade they will be looking for.
There are likely to be takers if Vucevic is on the trade market this summer but there are plenty of potential difficulties when it comes to reaching a deal that works for both sides.
Vooch would be a big miss should he leave and it could end up backfiring on the Magic. But if the front office does want to take a risk this offseason, here are some potential trade options.
Eds. Note: The deals proposed here are for instances and examples of what it might take to acquire these players. They do not reflect any actual reporting or indication either team is interested in such a deal.
Potential trade 1: Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors find themselves in a unique position where they will likely be challenging at the top of the Western Conference next year but also have the second pick in this year’s draft, with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson soon set to return from near season-long injuries.
This opens up possible trade opportunities for the second pick. The Warriors want to win more titles while Curry and Thompson are still playing and could be targeting the right established players to partner with the splash brothers in order to make that happen.
Golden State does not have much depth at center and Nikola Vucevic’s ability to shoot and stretch the floor would fit in well with Steve Kerr’s system.
The Magic would have to take on Andrew Wiggins’ hefty contract to make it happen, however. The talented wing is set to earn $29.5 million next season which rises by $2 million in both of the two seasons following that.
While Wiggins is a good player and would help address Orlando’s need for more scoring, his giant deal would limit what the team could do during the next few years. It would be a big gamble to hope the draft pick works out and that Wiggins delivers enough to justify his pay.
Currently, his contract probably outweighs his ability.
He averaged an impressive 21.8 points per game last season but is still yet to properly develop other areas of his game such as his defense, where his lapses have meant he is come in for criticism and would not fit well with Steve Clifford’s ideology.
But the true prize in the trade would be the second pick. The Magic could look to bolster their backcourt with an exciting guard like Anthony Edwards or LaMelo Ball, or their frontcourt with James Wiseman or Obi Toppin. This could be the team’s chance to draft a star for the future.
The risk would be considerable, however. There are doubts over this year’s top prospects and the team would really need to be sold on someone to lose their main star in Vucevic.
Potential Trade 2: Washington Wizards
The Magic have lacked a true star since Dwight Howard left the team in 2012. and while Nikola Vucevic is a good player in his own right, he is not a consistent All-Star-caliber player.
While Bradley Beal failed to make an All-NBA team last season, his omission was certainly a big surprise. The shooting guard averaged a whopping 30.5 points a game off 45.5-percent shooting as the Washington Wizards missed out on the playoffs.
Something the Orlando Magic do not have is a big scorer and Beal would be just that. But while the offer of Vucevic and two picks is a good one — and the Wizards reportedly have an interest in drafting a center with the ninth pick in this year’s draft — there is a good chance the Wizards may not want to lose a player of Beal’s caliber at all.
This move would be about trying to win now for the Magic. Orlando would really have to have faith in the current group of players which would be around Beal. While the current group has potential, he would likely lack the necessary support to make a deep run without more additions. Especially with Jonathan Isaac out for the year, not that he has provided a huge lift offensively to this point in his career.
It would probably make more sense for both players involved to go to a contending team should they move on. But if the Magic want to try and shift Vucevic for an already proven star then Beal is the type of player the front office should look at.
Nikola Vucevic’s floor spacing qualities could help create more opportunities for returning point guard John Wall. The Wizards would also be able to build for the future with two good picks in this year’s draft, and another to come in the future.
Washington has not made it past the Eastern Conference Semifinals since Beal has played for the team so the front office has a decision to make over whether to shop players to find a winning formula now or further down the line or instead stick with their current crop of players and hope it turns out better next season.
If Beal is on the market he will have plenty of interested suitors. The Magic would be getting a bigger star at the expense of disrupting their current setup and they would have to work to get Beal the right help to make it worth it.
Potential Trade 3: New Orleans Pelicans
There are plenty of rumors flying around that the New Orleans Pelicans could be shopping Jrue Holiday this offseason, with The Athletic’s Shams Charania reporting that the front office is openly discussing trades.
The New Orleans Pelicans are openly discussing star Jrue Holiday in trade talks and several contending teams are pursuing, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 4, 2020
While a contending team would make the most sense for Holiday and would ultimately be more likely to land him, the Magic could offer Vucevic to the Pelicans if they are interested in capitalizing on Holiday’s availability.
Holiday is arguably the best two-way shooting guard in the NBA. He is an excellent perimeter defender with the ability to guard a number of positions thanks to fantastic quickness and defensive instincts. Not only that, but he also averaged 19.1 points and 6.7 assists per game last season making him one of the league’s best all-round players.
The Pelicans have a real chance to become a contender under new coach Stan Van Gundy with the power of Zion Williamson, passing of Lonzo Ball and scoring of Brandon Ingram, if they can get get the latter to commit to the team long-term.
If the team is set on trading Holiday then Vucevic is someone that could help the Pelicans not just push into the playoffs but make a run. He dispelled doubts over his postseason capabilities this season with his superb performances against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Van Gundy could use his floor spacing to open up more avenues for Williamson and he could also provide an effective third scoring option along with Ingram. Vucevic would provide some quality at a position the team is not particularly strong in and his passing ability could help bring the team’s other talented players into play more.
This hypothetical trade is dependent on the Pelicans feeling like they are ready to start competing. Holiday will be a man in demand and will likely have plenty more appealing offers than a low playoff team in Orlando but the offer of a proven talent like Vucevic is an intriguing one.
The Magic giving up Vucevic would be to give up the heart of the team, so the front office should not settle. By picking up the Pelicans’ 13th pick, the team would at least have two middle of the draft selections this year for prospects who can hopefully help the team out for the foreseeable future.
It still might cost the Magic a bit more.
Conclusion
Trading Nikola Vucevic would ultimately signal the Orlando Magic are moving in a new direction.
The chances of Orlando getting a star in a trade involving Vucevic are very slim. His impact on this Magic team is enormous and without him there are no back-to-back playoff appearances the last two years.
Losing the 30-year-old would likely require the team to take a step back with the intention of moving forward further down the line. There are questions over how high this current team can go and with Jonathan Isaac out injured next season, the front office could use the next year to set up the team’s future while trying to agree a longer contract with the young defensive star.
But Vucevic’s value to this team cannot be understated. The team should not be simply looking to sell him off for anything. The Magic must approach the trade market with confidence and be prepared to say no if the deal is not right for what the front office wants to create.
If the team is prepared to move backward and potentially sacrifice a third straight season in the playoffs to try and improve in the long run then now could be the time to move Vucevic. His trade value is high after his playoff performances and his diverse skill set makes him a real asset.
It would be tough to part with a player who has given so much to the team but with Orlando at a crossroads, something has to give this offseason. Whether that involves Vucevic or not will be discovered over the coming weeks.