The Orlando Magic are already starting to get some work in with pick-up runs. They may well be chatting with Jamahl Mosley and getting some sense of what they plan to run and how they will hit the ground running for the season.
There are still a few players getting in their last bits of the offseason.
Franz Wagner is, of course, playing for Germany in EuroBasket. Cole Anthony appears to be stealing some last pick-up runs in New York before making his trip south. Markelle Fultz also appears to be waiting a bit before returning to Orlando.
Everyone will have to be back in town though soon. We are officially in the final countdown to training camp and the start of the 2023 season’s journey.
T-minus two weeks.
The Orlando Magic will open training camp in two weeks and there are already a lot of questions to ask as the team examines its roster ahead of camp.
The Magic will officially get together at the new AdventHealth Training Facility on Monday, Sept. 26 for the team’s media day and begin training camp on Tuesday, Sept. 27.
This is a season with tremendous anticipation and excitement to be sure.
It is not just the introduction of first overall pick Paolo Banchero and the growth of young prospects like Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs, Wendell Carter and more; or the return from injury for Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac (we hope); or just the start of a new season, it is all of those things combined. It is the anticipation and excitement to see all these elements come together.
External expectations are once again low as everyone expects a young team to go through its lumps. Internally, the Magic are not ready to commit to saying this is a playoff team (although they do not close that door).
The goal is simply to improve and to be doing things that will help the team win more. Not only for this year but in the long term.
Orlando is still a rebuilding team with long-term goals in mind.
Before anyone can get to what the Magic ultimately do in April, we have to get to October first. Training camp is going to be a critical part of the season for sorting through positions and setting roles for the team in the early part of the season.
There are going to be a lot of questions answered early in camp before the season begins. Or, at least, there are questions that need some answer to start the season even if that answer could change through the course of the season.
Every training camp brings these kinds of battles and roster questions. The Magic are no different. Especially with all the young players they have.
Here is what we are watching as camp begins:
Orlando Magic training camp battles to watch
Who starts at shooting guard?
Even before it was announced Gary Harris had torn the meniscus in his left knee and would need surgery to repair it, this was perhaps the biggest question that would need clarity before the season began.
Even with Harris out of the equation, this still feels like a spot that needs clarity. Even if the initial decision feels academic.
It starts with the fact that it feels like four starting spots are already fairly secured.
Markelle Fultz is the favorite at point guard (more on that in a minute). Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero seem locked in at the forward spots. And Wendell Carter, perhaps the team’s best player down the stretch of the season as he gained more confidence, is a sure bet at center (or one of the forward spots).
It is hard to argue against any four of those players — and especially hard to argue against Wagner, Banchero and Carter being ensured of a spotting start.
Before Harris’ injury, the debate then was whether the Magic should start the veteran shooter or stick with the promising young rookie who struggled through in his first season. There were good reasons for both to get their shot at it — Harris would provide some veteran know-how and much-needed 3-point shooting while Suggs has the potential to be a breakout star.
Now after Harris’ injury, it feels like Suggs is set to start at shooting guard. But the questions remain because of how poor his rookie year was. He should make some improvements, but he has to prove himself again.
The other options come with their own questions though.
Cole Anthony is a scorer but would be an odd fit next to Markelle Fultz. He would be a solid shooter to pair with Fultz. But the lack of size could throw the team off.
R.J. Hampton could be another good option for the Magic to start at the 2. But Hampton really struggled last year and he did not show himself well in Summer League. He has a lot of questions about where he fits in the league and what his ultimate role will be.
Those questions probably keep either from getting the starting job — Cole Anthony is the best bet to push for starter’s minutes, especially with Jalen Suggs and Devin Cannady and even R.J. Hampton able to help out at point guard.
Suggs did not get the starting job last year until Harris was a late scratch on opening night of the season. It seems certain he will slot in as the shooting guard again.
But when Harris gets back, that question could be thrown back into the air. And if Suggs struggles, it could be an open competition yet again.
Orlando Magic training camp battles to watch
Is point guard really settled?
It is widely assumed at this point that Markelle Fultz is going to be the starting point guard for the Orlando Magic.
Fultz had a strong finish to the season after returning from a torn ACL, leaving a good impression for how the season ended. His 10.8 points per game and 5.5 assists per game in 20.0 minutes per game of limited action were encouraging. More importantly, he just left a good feeling for the impact he could make.
It has since become assumed that Fultz would ascend back to being the starter as he was when he originally got hurt in January 2021.
That may well be the case. Everyone knows where Fultz has his successes and why he makes sense as a playmaker and a point guard.
But it feels unfair to the incumbent in Cole Anthony. He has seemingly been pushed to the side through really no fault of his own.
Anthony had a career season in his sophomore year, averaging 16.3 points per game and 5.7 assists per game. He still shot only 39.1 percent from the floor as he struggled with his efficiency as the Magic’s lead option.
But everyone saw how he could affect a game with how he won games for the team during the first quarter of the season. That might not have lasted, but it is still in there.
Anthony is still incredibly young too — 22 years old! He made some strong leaps in his second year, especially as a playmaker and even as a defender a bit. There is no reason to think he will not continue to improve his jumper, his decision-making and everything else.
Why wouldn’t Anthony test and push Fultz for the starting point guard? Anthony has been the starter essentially since Fultz’s injury. That is nearly two full seasons as a starter.
Anthony still likely slots in as the team’s backup point guard. But he has earned a good, long look for the spot. Especially since he has never played the sixth man role before.
Fultz is probably still the answer. But the Magic need to see Anthony on the floor first before they make that final assessment.
Orlando Magic training camp battles to watch
Which forward will break through?
The Orlando Magic’s starting forwards are pretty well set.
Franz Wagner is having a star-making turn for Germany in EuroBasket and has looked improved across the board. And top overall pick Paolo Banchero is expected to step in and play a pretty big role from the start.
The Magic are locked at forward.
The depth behind them is where the questions arise. And it is the case throughout the roster too. Orlando has a lot of young, talented players who likely need to play and can make an impact in the NBA. But the team does not have that many minutes to pass around.
This is the central question about the Magic’s rotation: How do the Magic spread out the minutes throughout their roster? How do they make sure everyone gets their time?
This is a big question especially at power forward where the Magic are going to have to break from doing what is best for winning to play Jonathan Isaac.
At this point, it is not 100 percent certain Isaac will be ready for training camp. It is an assumption he will be. But everyone made that assumption last fall too before the Magic started camp. Isaac obviously never played.
President of basketball operations Jeff Weltman has promised that Orlando is not going to rush Isaac back. Even further, he has repeatedly said the Magic and their training staff are cognizant that he has not played NBA basketball in two full years.
Still, the Magic need to make sure he gets his time and his run on the court to complete his rehab. Isaac may come off the bench and may play initially with a minute restriction, but he is going to play.
Gary Harris’ injury has opened a pathway to alleviate some of this immediate minute crunch (more on the guards in a second). But at full health, the Magic are locked in at every position — Jalen Suggs or Gary Harris at backup shooting guard, Terrence Ross as the backup 3 and Jonathan Isaac at 4.
Isaac probably will not play back-to-backs, so depth will be key. And Orlando has options in Chuma Okeke and even Bol Bol.
Both have their own inconsistencies and hurdles to overcome. But both feel like players who need time on the floor. Both players are young enough that they should have room to improve and grow. Both have shown they can be contributors to winning teams.
It is hard to see the Magic being able to play both when this roster is fully healthy. Someone is going to have to play very well to breakthrough and change the Magic’s planned rotation and preconceived notions.
They are both very capable of doing so too.
Okeke can be a great 3-point shooter, something the Magic are desperate to have on the roster. Bol can do that too and the potential of him as a playmaking 7-footer is hard to pass over. His problem throughout his career has been health and mobility. The Magic re-signed him, it feels like he has to play.
Moe Wagner is also dancing around there as a potential power forward for bigger lineups too.
But you can already see there are a lot of options the Magic have to sort through.
Orlando Magic training camp battles to watch
Which guard will break through?
Similar to the forwards, there is inevitably going to be a guard who gets squeezed out of the rotation if this team is at full health.
The Orlando Magic have Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs, Gary Harris, Cole Anthony and Terrence Ross who will all play when they are healthy. That is going to keep R.J. Hampton, Caleb Houstan and Devin Cannady from playing consistent minutes.
All three though — especially Hampton and Houstan — could fight their way to minutes when given the chance. It is just not certain they will be able to do so or if they can get through that group ahead of them.
Hampton certainly has the inside track because of his experience. The Magic like his speed in the open court and his ability to shoot from the outside — a surprising 35.0-percent from deep which was a significant improvement.
Orlando views Hampton as a 3-and-D win for sure, although Hampton probably tries to do too much off the dribble. The team has some proof of concept with him.
Houstan is also very valuable to Orlando.
He was the Magic’s second-round pick because of his shooting ability and his positional versatility. The Magic like him for a reason. And while he may be one of the youngest players on this roster, he also has tons of talent.
Houstan had some big games in Summer League as a sort of proof of concept. But he still struggled with his consistency and his ability to do more than shoot spot-up threes.
But as things stand, the two will find it difficult to get consistent minutes unless they blow everyone away. Someone will have to break through. That is what training camp is for establishing.
So that when the opportunity comes around, these players will be ready to take that next step.
Orlando Magic training camp battles to watch
Is the Bamba/Carter pairing done?
The Orlando Magic surprised everyone last year when they ultimately decided to start Wendell Carter and Mo Bamba together.
This seemed to go against the trend in the league to go smaller and use positional versatility on defense. Carter certainly could defend power forwards, but this just felt odd to start two nominal centers together.
Somehow the pairing was not a complete disaster.
For the season, the Magic had a -5.5 net rating with Bamba and Carter on the floor together. That is not the greatest number, but it was better than the team’s overall -8.1 net rating for the season.
It was something the Magic felt comfortable going with. But it still never felt like a long-term solution.
Still, the whole reasoning behind playing Bamba and Carter together was to get the team’s five best players on the court at the same time. Bamba earned his way onto the court with a great preseason. The Magic saw value in him being on the court.
The overall question again is who are the five best players?
Bamba had a career season last year and he should be considered for a starting spot in the end. But it seems certain he is going to go to the bench and no longer be the starter.
The minutes the two played together — 1,013 in total, or 54.7 percent of Carter’s minutes and 55.5 percent of Bamba’s minutes — were quite significant. There are some questions about how either will play without the other even with the thought of playing Paolo Banchero or Jonathan Isaac with them.
That just leaves the big question of whether this is a grouping the team should abandon so quickly. Even if it is just a limited run or dependent on matchups or by committee, Bamba and Carter might still be a pairing worth exploring.
And figuring out how to make that work with this team’s roster crunch is even greater.
This is what training camp is for, of course. The Magic will have plenty to figure out as the team enters camp and goes through its preseason.