The Orlando Magic’s roster is full.
There is just one more contract up for grabs — a two-way slot next to Admiral Schofield and Kevon Harris. That has kept the competition up in training camp. But it has also reduced any intrigue for the back end of the roster.
Still, this is an area where the Magic continue to reveal their identity and the qualities they value in their roster. They are building a roster for the Osceola Magic after all. And they want that team to be run similar to the way they run their main roster.
The Magic’s Exhibit 10 players — Mac McClung, Trevelin Queen, Brandon Williams, Miye Oni and D.J. Wilson (who was waived last week to add Oni to the roster) — all have a lot of the same qualities the team likes. That emphasis on versatility and the ability to play multiple positions and demonstrate multiple skills is still front and center with everything you do.
The old adage is that integrity is what you do when nobody is watching. There is something to that. You reveal what you value and what is the heart of your team when it is not so important.
The kinds of players the Orlando Magic sought to fill out their training camp roster reveals their values and the kind of team everyone can see them building.
That might be a callous way of talking about these four players who are all fighting for their spot in the NBA. But in the bigger scheme of this team, that feels like what the Magic have done. They have put an emphasis on the skills that are at the heart of the project.
And for those four players, that is likely what they have to display during training camp and their preseason efforts to try to earn that final two-way spot and make their mark on what is looking like a very talented G-League roster.
"“I think it’s a very competitive group,” McClung said during media day. “I’m a competitive person myself. That always brings out the best in people. That’s what we play the game for.”"
Each player does bring something to the table for this team that would simulate something the Magic tend to value.
Mac McClung is probably the most well-known of the four after his performance in the 2023 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. He played in only two games for the Philadelphia 76ers last year and has just four total NBA games in two seasons.
McClung is more than a super athlete though. He averaged 19.8 points per game and 4.9 assists per game while shooting 47.4 percent from beyond the arc on 4.9 3-point attempts per game.
He has some playmaking ability, but his ability to score in a variety of ways certainly would fit something the Magic need.
In preseason, McClung has scored five total points on 2-for-2 shooting in 24 minutes. He, like the rest of the Exhibit 10 players, have played the entire fourth quarter in both preseason games. That has made it hard to assess much of what any of these players have done.
McClung may be the most well-known of this bunch. But Trevelin Queen is probably the most intriguing.
Queen is a 6-foot-6 wing who is an excellent defender and has athleticism to finish around the rim, block shots and rebound. That is likely why he might be the pick to win the final two-way spot (even if McClung is more refined offensively).
Queen just has the versatility the Magic like for their wing players.
He won the G-League MVP in 2022 after averaging 25.3 point sper game. He averaged 22.6 points per game last year with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, despite shooting 26.5 percent from beyond the arc (he is a career 30.1 percent shooter in his first three seasons in the G-League).
Queen leads the Exhibit 10 players in scoring in preseason with 13 points on 5-for-13 shooting and 1-for-7 shooting from deep.
Brandon Williams is the player who probably gives the Magic most of the skills they need from the guard spot. He is a solid shooter at 6-foot-2 who averaged 12.9 points per game in 24 appearances wih the Portland Trail Blazers last year. He averaged 19.8 points per game and shot 36.1 percent on 4.4 3-point field goal attempts per game last year for the College Park SkyHawks.
So far in the preseason, Williams has scored six total points on 2-for-6 shooting overall and 2-for-4 shooting from deep.
D.J. Wilson is not eligible for a two-way contract because of his years served in the league already. He fits well in the G-League. But he is miscast somewhat as a center because of his poor rebounding. He can block shots at a decent rate though.
And finally, the Magic will get to see Miye Oni make his debut Tuesday. Oni played 80 games in three seasons for the Utah Jazz. He is known as a rangy defender from his time at Yale in college.
Again, it is hard to see any of these players making a huge impact for this season. But they are very similar in the mold of Admiral Schofield. They may have some flaw to their game, but they can fill multiple holes for the Magic. That versatility is what the team is after.
As the Magic try to fill that final two-way spot — and it very well could be someone who is not on the training camp roster as the Magic aim to complete the Osceola Magic roster — they will certainly be hunting for players with that versatility.
This is the core of who the Magic are and what they want to build. And if any of these players want to stand out and make their mark with the team — whether that is now in training camp and preseason or moving forward in the G-League season — it will be with this versatility.
Orlando tells everyone exactly who it is with what value the team seeks in these kinds of players. And that should be abundantly clear what the team’s core philosophy is.