5 reasons for Orlando Magic fans to be thankful this Thanksgiving
By Luke Duffy
2. Help is on the way
With a trade not looking likely anytime soon, the Orlando Magic can focus on getting some players back off the treatment table, and into the rotation.
Fans love Markelle Fultz, and when he is back on the court the team is going to be better. It was not that long ago he was the second-best player, after Nikola Vucevic, in a playoff series for the Orlando Magic against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Having a rotation of Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs, Cole Anthony and Caleb Houstan will allow the team to be competitive for longer in games. Similarly, when Jonathan Isaac returns, he will slot in next to Bol Bol and Wendell Carter on occasion, to create one of the longest starting fives that the league has ever seen.
Especially if the team sticks Franz Wagner or Paolo Banchero in that lineup with them — which why not?
There was a time when the idea of Jonathan Isaac and Mo Bamba was enticing. We have evolved way past that. But having Isaac for 15 minutes a night to start with would be huge.
Kevon Harris has had his moments for the Magic, but he is not a long-term solution. Rather, an energizer who is giving all he can right now.
Give Isaac some of his minutes, and the group can go to the next level.
Okeke was contributing nicely before leaving the second meeting with the Indiana Pacers earlier this week with an apparent knee injury. It is unclear how long he will be out, but his absence will be felt in what is at this point a thin rotation.
The Magic rank a lowly 26th in defensive rating (114.0 points allowed per 100 possessions), and in the last 10 games that number has somehow been worse at 116.0.
They are never going to get anywhere if they cannot get stops more consistently. Even if it does not end up becoming their identity as some predicted it would.
But the re-introduction of Fultz, Isaac and Okeke would surely bring that swollen number down, and lead to more wins in the process.
We are nearly at that point, and it will be good news to see the bench brimming with eager players again soon.