It has been a week since the trade deadline came and went.
New players are settling in with their new teams. Or taking buyouts and aligning themselves for playoff runs.
Everything is stabilizing around the league as the focus turns toward the sprint to the end of the season after this weekend’s All-Star Break. The Orlando Magic find themselves four games back of the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards for the final spot in the Play-In Tournament.
That dream is very much alive.
But they will do so with the young group that got them there. The only activity for the Magic at the trade deadline was to send Mo Bamba to the Los Angeles Lakers for Patrick Beverley (whom they promptly waived) and a 2024 second-round pick from the Denver Nuggets. The team also cut Terrence Ross, allowing him to sign with the Phoenix Suns for their championship run.
The Orlando Magic largely stood pat at the trade deadline. But they set up what coudl be a busy offseason. One that should include a heavy play in the free agent market.
The Magic have had to be pretty pleased with how much their young team has grown and how they have progressed. They have already eclipsed last year’s win total and the team can put a little bit of winning pressure on their group to try to make a postseason push, even if it ultimately falls short.
The trade deadline though is not just about setting up the rest of the season.
For the teams hoping to make a playoff, there might be some mortgaging of their future to make the most of the final 25 games in front of them. For a lot of other teams, the trade deadline is about setting up the team’s offseason, whether that is lowering a tax bill or preparing for free agency.
The Magic did not meaningfully change their offseason outlook. Bamba had a non-guaranteed contract for the 2024 season. Trading him essentially made a decision the team seemed on track to make before June 29 when that deal becomes fully guaranteed.
But it did highlight Orlando will have a ton of money to spend this offseason.
As things stand now, the Magic have just $67.2 million committed to next season. That does not include non-guaranteed amounts for Jonathan Isaac ($17.4 million), Gary Harris ($13 million), Bol Bol ($2.2 million) and Goga Bitadze (he reportedly signed a two-year deal with a team option for 2024).
It is safe to assume the Magic will retain Isaac and Harris at minimum, bringing the Magic’s grand total to $97.6 million. And that does not include the Magic’s two likely first-round picks (the Magic are currently projected to reach the fifth and seventh picks, an estimated total of $12 million.
Even accounting for those, the Magic would still find themselves $24.4 million underneath the projected $134 million salary cap. Orlando could easily get themselves to more and they could easily make trades to acquire more salary to improve their roster.
The point for the Magic this offseason remains its flexibility. And while this is not a particularly strong free-agent class, the Magic are still expected to be players in the market. It is fair to think the Magic will grab at least one major free agent this offseason to bolster their roster and team.
There is still a lot of season left to go through and a lot to learn to set this offseason up. Already, fans — and surely the team — have a sense of what the Magic need this offseason to bolster this team.
It is not too early to turn an eye toward the offseason and who the Magic might be targeting in free agency. The deadline works to set the summer up. And Orlando has certainly set the table.
5 free agents for the Orlando Magic to keep an eye on
Fred VanVleet, Toronto Raptors
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There is no avoiding the biggest fish in the room. There has been enough smoke billowing out of rumors connecting Fred VanVleet to the Orlando Magic, that it deserves some discussion and consideration.
VanVleet is a former All-Star who is capable of playing at a star level still. Just look at how he controlled the game in Tuesday’s Toronto Raptors win over the Orlando Magic. He had 16 assists and was just dealing.
If there is a reason that VanVleet makes sense to the Magic it is this flexibility in his role.
Some nights, VanVleet is the team’s leading scorer, someone who can take and make a bunch of threes and shoot his team into games. On other nights, he sets the table for others. With Pascal Siakam and other stars on the team, Fred VanVleet can fit in as a floor spacer and table setter.
Regardless of anything else, VanVleet always ranks well defensively in a lot of metrics — although his size remains a detriment even in that Raptors’ ecosystem. He is fourth in the league in deflections in the league at 3.6 per game, according to NBA.com’s hustle stats.
VanVleet should not be dismissed as an option. He would fit in right with the Magic, giving them a strong 3-point threat and someone who can easily sit back and set the table for Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner and even play alongside the Magic’s guards in Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs and Cole Anthony.
It would be a major addition and one that would tip the team over the top. He is a floor raiser at the very least. And not such a crazy idea.
The pause a lot of fans have with VanVleet is his age — this is his age 28 season and he turns 29 at the end of February — and his projected salary range. It is looking like he is seeking a salary near $30 million per year. That is a lot to commit to him, especially on a four-year deal. Especially so for a young team on the rise.
Still, as much as the debate among fans hits about whether VanVleet is the right call for Orlando. It does make some sense to add him. And he would help this team significantly.
Other Big Fish to Chase: Khris Middleton, James Harden, Kristaps Porzingis
5 free agents for the Orlando Magic to keep an eye on
Gary Trent Jr., Toronto Raptors
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The real target many Orlando Magic fans have had on their radars from the Toronto Raptors has actually been Fred VanVleet’s backcourt mate in Gary Trent Jr. It seemed more likely Trent would be the one to leave the Raptors, especially with the Raptors seeming to favor a bigger lineup that features Scottie Barnes at the 2.
Trent is simply a knock-down shooter when he is on, hitting 36.9 percent of his threes this year and 38.4 percent of his threes overall at a decent volume. He averages 7.2 3-point attempts per game and has shot more than 7.0 3-pointers per game in each of the last three years.
Orlando’s 3-point specialist in Gary Harris is taking only 4.0 per game. The Magic have three players shooting 4.0 per game led by Franz Wagner’s 4.5 attempts per game.
Orlando have had only seven players in franchise history take more than 7.0 3-point attempts per game in a season. The last was Devin Cannady in 2022 at 7.4 per game and the last before that was Evan Fournier in 2021.
This is not always a good thing. But a clear weakness for the Magic has been their 3-point volume. This just is not a team that spaces the floor and takes a bunch of threes.
Again, this could be a good thing because the team is not settling for shots from deep and trying to attack the paint. But everyone knows the Magic will need a knock-down shooter and to increase this volume to compete at higher levels.
This is why Trent is undoubtedly one of the targets this offseason — for the Magic and likely for several teams, even to stay with the Raptors.
Trent is maybe not an elite shooter, but he is a very good one, hitting on 40.2 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3-pointers (the feet-set threes, the Magic really like to get). He rates in the 78th percentile in Basketball-Index’s 3-point shot-making metric.
If Orlando can get kick outs, Trent is the kind of player who will make them. And he has the ability to create those shots for himself too. This is not just a stand-still shooter.
If there is a most-likely target for the Magic this offseason, Trent is the guy.
He is certainly looking for a raise off his $17.5 million salary (he has a player option for $18.8 million for next year that he is expected to decline). That is going to be the starting amount. it will cost $85-90 million over four years to grab him.
But the Magic need shooting bad. And Trent could be a big boost in that department.
Other Shooters to Chase: Bogdan Bogdanovic, Caris LeVert
5 free agents for the Orlando Magic to keep an eye on
Bruce Brown, Denver Nuggets
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The Orlando Magic frankly just need better players too. As simple as that sounds, it is still a complex and difficult thing to find. Getting two-way players helps. And finding 3-and-D players is still the ultimate goal. That is how the Magic advance.
They want to be a defensive-minded team and really buckle down on that end. So as much as the team needs shooting, it needs guys who can defend well too.
So like with Gary Trent Jr., the Magic also have to have their focus on shooting too. So finding guys who can do both (like Trent in many ways, honestly) is a valuable thing.
As much as fans have had their eyes on Gary Trent Jr. then, they have had their eyes on Bruce Brown too.
The former Miami Hurricane has caught on with the Denver Nuggets this year, averaging 11.3 points per game and shooting 38.8 percent from beyond the arc. This a year after he made 40.4 percent of his threes with the Brooklyn Nets in 2022.
He is hitting 41.1 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3-pointers and 42.6 percent above the break. Brown is a great 3-point shooter.
That only earned Brown a two-year deal with a player option for next year at $6.8 million. He is due for a pretty substantial raise. One the Denver Nuggets are unlikely to be able to meet with all the salary they now have committed.
Brown is a very gettable player who fills that shooting need for the Magic. But also could be a solid defender.
He records 1.4 steals per 75 possessions and 2.4 deflections per 75 possessions. He rates in the 86th percentile according to Basketball-Index in screen navigation and in the 89th percentile in off-ball chaser.
That shows a ton of defensive potential. But he is not changing the Nuggets’ defense, which has at times been poor this year. He could benefit from being around other lockdown defenders.
The Magic need to find versatile and mobile defenders. And that is something Brown could provide. He should definitely be on the list and the radar as free agency approaches.
Other 3-And-Ds to Chase: Josh Hart, Caris LeVert, Josh Richardson
5 free agents for the Orlando Magic to keep an eye on
Dwight Powell, Dallas Mavericks
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The Orlando Magic’s trade of Mo Bamba highlighted a few things about this team. The first is that it understood things with Bamba had run its course. He had fallen out of the rotation completely. It was to the point that the team very seriously compromised its center depth to move him along someplace where he could contribute.
The Magic rectified this some by signing Goga Bitadze for the rest of the season with a team option for next season.
But this is a stopgap. And the Magic should know they have some questions at center to answer.
Moe Wagner has been solid this year and been pretty good. But he is also a player with some clear flaws as well as he has played this season.
He is currently the third-worst center in the league defending the rim, giving up 77.4 percent shooting at the rim. The two players behind him are Neemias Queta (77.8 percent, four games played, 6.1 minutes per game) and Tony Bradley (85.7 percent, 10 games played, 2.9 minutes per game).
Wagner leads the Magic in charges drawn this year. So he has value. But that is his defense in the paint right now.
There is something missing there. And the Magic need to invest some at the center spot because Wendell Carter is due to miss 15-20 games per year (he played a career-high 62 games last year and can only top out at 62 again this year if he plays every game the rest of this season).
Orlando needs at least a starter-caliber center off the bench. And that does not even get into some of the rebounding inconsistency this team has battled throughout the season.
There are not a lot of centers available on this market. But one to keep an eye on who would fit a lot of the Magic’s needs is Dwight Powell.
Powell is not much of a scorer — 6.8 points per game and 4.3 rebounds per game in 19.7 minutes per game. Powell has been a solid starter and screener for the Dallas Mavericks, but he has not been the guy to finish.
His real value is in his screening ability and ability to make every wheel work.
Powell ranks in the 95th percentile with 5.8 screen assists per 75 possessions. Basketball-Index ranks him in the 99th percentile in total roll-man impact per 75 possessions at +1.12 points per 75 possessions above the league average.
How much of that is working with Luka Doncic and now Kyrie Irving? That is a fair question to ask. The Magic’s guards are not the same level. And Orlando likes to work a lot from their forwards, which enables teams to switch more effectively.
On top of this, Powell is not going to boost the team’s defense significantly. He gives up 64.0 percent shooting at the rim, a better mark than Wagner but not significantly so.
He can still make an impact there though. Basketball-Index rates him in the 79th percentile allowing 2.70 percentage points worse at the rim than expected and 94th percentile in adjusted points saved at the rim per 75 possessions at 0.43.
He is also a so-so rebounder (although a great offensive rebounder, again how much of that is from Doncic?).
This is all to say, the Magic are going to have to probably look elsewhere to get some real center help. Powell will want to get paid like a high-level backup to leave the Mavericks.
Other Centers to Target: Christian Wood, Nerlens Noel, Jaxson Hayes
5 free agents for the Orlando Magic to keep an eye on
Malik Beasley, Los Angeles Lakers
| Season | Age | Tm | G | MP | FG% | 3P% | eFG% | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | TOV | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | 26 | TOT | 58 | 26.4 | .395 | .357 | .521 | .841 | 3.5 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 13.3 |
| 2022-23 | 26 | UTA | 55 | 26.8 | .396 | .359 | .522 | .841 | 3.6 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 13.4 |
| 2022-23 | 26 | LAL | 3 | 20.3 | .382 | .320 | .500 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 11.3 | |
| Career | 394 | 21.7 | .423 | .380 | .539 | .819 | 2.6 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 10.8 |
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Generated 2/16/2023.
The Orlando Magic are always looking for depth. It may be low on the priority list, but the team is going to have to keep up its scoring punch off the bench.
Orlando has seen how powerful its bench groups can be of late too. Cole Anthony has started to turn himself into a solid sixth man. But his price is about to rise pretty significantly. Very quietly, this could be the biggest decision of the offseason.
It could make sense for Orlando to make that decision now or to add center depth by signing a player while they still have cap room and then add Anthony on top of that.
More on the Anthony debate in the offseason. For now, there are several bench players who are worth taking a look at to give the team some scoring punch.
I will highlight former Florida State guard Malik Beasley in this space.
Beasley is averaging 13.3 points per game on 35.7 percent shooting for the Utah Jazz and now the Los Angeles Lakers. He has been a bursty scorer throughout his career, able to string together 3-pointers in a hurry.
His problem has been inconsistency. But he has always been able to put up some points and provide some nice punch off the bench wherever he has been. For a team that just needs a scorer at times, Beasley can provide some major help.
And the team might be able to get him at a bit of a discount or a more reasonable deal. He does have a team option for next year at $16.5 million. That likely means he will stay with the Lakers. That is one of the benefits they were likely seeking in trading for him.