7 trades involving Aaron Gordon and the Orlando Magic

Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks have a good base to start from with Luka Doncic as the superstar player and Kristaps Porzingis as a good roll man to compliment him. The Mavericks clearly need one more guy.

Is Aaron Gordon that guy? That I am not sure about. He could certainly help them but I am not sure he is going to put them over the top.

The bigger issue is the Mavericks really do not have the prospects, picks or players that would really interest the Magic at this point. They might have a better shot at Evan Fournier as things stand.

The best offer Dallas could probably come up with is something centered on either Tim Hardaway Jr.’s expiring contract or a package with James Johnson (to match salaries) and Dorian Finney-Smith.

That is not exactly the kind of young prospects the Magic are looking for. And Dallas does not have a ton of draft capital to spend — this year’s first-round pick is headed to the New York Knicks as part of the Porzingis deal.

There just is not a lot to be interested in here.

Detroit Pistons

It is really rare to see two teams at the bottom of the standings trade major pieces. If the Detroit Pistons are expressing interest in Aaron Gordon, it is likely because they are looking to bring someone in to replace Jerami Grant because they traded him.

Orlando Magic

It feels really unlikely. Bad teams are bad because they do not have great players. So typically, they send out their best players for a wish and a hope on some future assets. They trade the present for the future.

There is not much present to trade for either the Pistons or the Magic. And neither team can afford to trade their future.

The Pistons do not have many future assets they can afford to give up. To acquire Aaron Gordon either the Magic would have to have interest in Jerami Grant and the teams would trade the two forwards straight up or the Pistons have to be willing to trade Killian Hayes or Saddiq Bey. Neither scenario feels likely.

It probably is not even worth discussing further.

The biggest conclusion then for the Magic is that they are seeking two of three things in these kinds of deals, at least as a start. They need a veteran who will be in the rotation next season, a young prospect who can grow into a role or a future first-round pick.

That is what it will take to make a Gordon deal happen. And there are clearly plenty of suitors to make things happen.