It is expected to be a busy summer in the NBA and for the Orlando Magic. Teams are going to be swapping stars, and the Magic may get involved in the star search. At the least, the Magic are expected to add some significant pieces to the roster.
It is a summer of big moves and a summer of big ambitions for the Magic.
Inevitably, while everyone is going window-shopping, few are probably thinking about what those big prizes might cost. The Magic are already navigating the first apron and trying to watch their money a bit to avoid some of those restrictions.
It leaves the Magic likely needing to sign some key minimum players to fill out their roster. Orlando cannot afford to waste a roster spot, though, and the Magic will have work to do after their offseason trades are completed.
Orlando may not be the first place people think when they think of the mercenary market -- the group of veterans who always seemingly end up on winning teams at minimum contracts. But the Magic will need to hit on some key signings to add competition and security to their roster.
While the Magic are expected to address their guard play in a trade and could add another guard or big wing through the draft, the Magic likely will need to add another shooting wing or forward to their lineup after the dust settles. The team could also be looking for a short-term center option to help hold the team steady before Moe Wagner returns from his torn ACL, likely in December or January.
Orlando will have a lot of work to do and precious few resources to get that work done after their trades are completed.
If the team is over the first apron, it will only have minimum contracts to hand out. And even if it is short of the apron, the team cannot use the taxpayer mid-level exception to exceed the first apron -- and using that would hard cap the team at the second apron.
The difference for the Magic in the short term between an improved team and a team that suddenly surges to the Eastern Conference Finals or beyond could come down to who the Magic add to the periphery of the roster.
This is what the Detroit Pistons did so well in signing Malik Beasley last offseason. After an at times frustrating season with the Milwaukee Bucks, the Detroit Pistons signed Beasley to a one-year, $6-million deal. He made good on that, becoming one of the best shooters in the league last season.
This is the kind of deal and player the Magic will look for to complete their roster.
Who could that player be? These are the free agents the Magic will likely be looking for as they scrounge the bargain bin to help complete their roster:
1. Tyus Jones, Phoenix Suns
Orlando Magic fans have had their eye on Tyus Jones for a long time. He was one of the names fans wanted the team to pursue last summer with their excess cap room. The Magic needed a point guard, and while Jones was undersized, he was an efficient offensive player.
Jones ended up being a player who slipped through the cracks. His efficient numbers with the Washington Wizards were not enough to convince anyone he could be a starter. The Phoenix Suns grabbed him on a minimum salary.
Jones certainly was not the reason the Suns fell apart. But he also did not give them the starting point guard they needed. He averaged 10.2 points per game and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 41.4 percent from three in 26.8 minutes per game. He appeared in 81 games and started 58.
The concerns about his defense and size played out and showed why he was not sought after in free agency.
Seeing how successful Cory Joseph was for the Magic last year, could Tyus Jones be a cheap upgrade for the Magic this time around? Could they look to add him as a minimum or near-minimum player to boost the bench and give them a ball-handler next to Anthony Black?
All of this would assume the Magic trade Cole Anthony or make moves elsewhere. But Jones, at a minimum, with the Magic's defensive infrastructure still has its appeal. Orlando would not need him as a starter -- and if the team had to start him, it would be similar to the need to start Jospeh, a Band-Aid that would eventually fall off in the Playoffs.
The possibility is still out there. And Jones' offensive skills still fit.
2. Jake LaRavia, Sacramento Kings
Jake LaRavia has struggled to find his footing in the NBA so far. The 6-foot-8 forward struggled to crack the Memphis Grizzlies' rotation in his first two years. He is a big small forward but not quite big enough to handle the power forwards around the league.
He does not fit the typical profile for the Magic as far as size. But he has the versatility to play either forward position as needed.
The attraction with him is his shooting potential. He has greatly improved in that front. In 19 games with the Sacramento Kings last year, he averaged 6.1 points per game and shot 38.5 percent from three on 2.7 attempts per game in 19.3 minutes per game. In 66 games with the Grizzlies and Kings, he averaged 6.9 points per game and shot 42.3 percent from three.
That is encouraging about his potential development.
LaRavia told Ben Pfeifer of Basketball Insiders that the Orlando Magic are a team he would be interested in playing for. His defense and potential for shooting should put him on the radar as a late summer addition.
LaRavia is certainly a name to keep an eye on to fill out the rotation.
3. Pat Spencer, Golden State Warriors
In Games 2 and 5 of the Golden State Warriors' series with the Houston Rockets, everyone had only one question: Who is that guy?
That guy would be referring to Pat Spencer, the Warriors' former two-way guard who signed a contract to the end of the season and was suddenly tearing up the Playoffs. Spencer scored 11 points in Game 2 and then scored another 11 in Game 5, both Warriors losses.
During the regular season, in games Spencer played at least 12 minutes, he averaged 7.6 points per game (eclipsing 10 points three times) and shot 27 for 57 (47.4 percent). He made 4 of 12 3-pointers in those games.
In the G-League's regular season, Spencer averaged 22.0 points per game and shot 40.0 percent from three, adding 6.0 assists per game for good measure. Spencer is a really intriguing prospect on the verge of gaining an NBA roster spot.
I would put Spencer on the list to earn a two-way spot if the Magic were interested. He is a bit undersized at 6-foot-3 to be a shooting guard and he is not quite a point guard. But Spencer has entrenched himself in the NBA's orbit and has shown enough to get a look from somewhere.