Anthony Black, the former sixth overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, has had an up-and-down start to his career. With the Magic's offseason additions, one thing is clear about Black's future in Orlando: his long-term stay is no longer a foregone conclusion.
The front office made a big-time splash this offseason by trading for Desmond Bane, who should help this team add another dynamic scoring punch and a true knockdown three-point shooter. They didn't stop there, as they also brought in both veteran guard Tyus Jones on a one-year deal and drafted Michigan State guard Jase Richardson.
With the Magic having a solidified backcourt pairing of Jalen Suggs and Desmond Bane, Anthony Black should be able to carve out a nice role coming off the bench alongside Tyus Jones. On the other hand, if Black doesn't take that year three leap, there's a real possibility he may not be in Orlando through his entire rookie contract.
Anthony Black's first two seasons
During the 2023-24 season, Black showed flashes of being a solid shooter from the perimeter, knocking down 39.4% of his three-point looks, even on a low volume at just 1.4 attempts per game. Where Black made his bread and butter was on the defensive end, by being a pesky and versatile defender on the perimeter, fitting right into the defensive culture that Jamahl Mosley has built in Orlando.
Black, during his rookie campaign, played in 69 games, started in 33 of them, and averaged 4.6 points in 16.9 minutes of play. It's also worth noting that the Magic were rolling with Black and Goga Bitadze in the starting lineup as they rattled off 10 wins in a row. Black had an overall very solid and productive rookie season, but year two wasn't quite the season that many fans had anticipated.
In the 2024-25 season, Anthony Black appeared in 78 games, started in 10, and averaged 9.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.1 steals in 24.2 minutes a night. While Black saw an increased role, his efficiency took a dip as he shot an underwhelming 42.6 percent from the floor and 31.8 percent from distance.
It is fair to say that, at face value, those numbers don't truly reflect AB's play, and injuries to his teammates significantly changed how the Magic would play. Paolo Banchero missed 34 games with an oblique tear, Franz Wagner 20 games with an oblique tear, Jalen Suggs underwent a season-ending knee surgery, and Moe Wagner suffered a torn ACL in December.
Injuries played a huge factor in both the win column and the performance of players. The flip side to giving Black a pass for the injuries is that he had an opportunity to take that next step with multiple top players out, and it never truly happened. We saw Franz Wagner play exceptionally well in the absence of Banchero; we saw Suggs play very well in the absence of both Franz and Paolo, but the same can't really be said about Anthony Black in those situations.
In 18 games without Franz Wagner, Black averaged 12.3 points, 3.3 boards, 3.1 assists, and 1.3 steals. There were absolutely moments where AB looked poised and ready for the moment, and other times where he looked like a second-year player still trying to put it all together.
Is the coaching staff sold on Black?
In March of 2025, Jamahl Mosley made a very interesting comment in his pre-game press conference when I asked if both Anthony Black and Jett Howard were up to speed in their development.
“Yeah, I think, in this year, it's been kind of tricky to evaluate exactly what it is," Mosley said. "In the beginning of the year, you have guys that can slot into a specific role at a specific time, and then when the guys go out, you’re asked to do more or a little less than what was tasked of you before. So I think it's hard to evaluate that specific because of the fluctuation of what's been going on."
With the team still dealing with guys in and out of the lineup, this was the perfect opportunity for the staff to see if Black and Howard were going to be a part of their long-term plan and if they were up to speed with their development. Mosley gave an honest answer about the team being plagued with injuires, but didn't give a confident answer about Black, which made me raise an eyebrow.
This comment stood out to me because if AB was truly up to speed in his development, I believe Mosley would've given a confident and resounding answer to the question, while also using and trusting him more on the offensive side of the ball. I could be looking into it a bit much, but the additions this offseason could limit Black's growth even more this season.
Anthony Black's future in Orlando
Orlando now has their core four locked into long-term deals, and when Banchero's rookie supermax kicks in next offseason, they're going to have to be very careful allocating money to the rest of their team. The Magic have two other expensive contracts in Jonathan Isaac, who's entering the first year of a four-year $59 million deal, and Wendell Carter Jr, who's going into the first year of a three-year $58 million contract.
Anthony Black had a club option that was picked up this offseason for $7.9 million, and entering next season, he will have another club option for $10.1 million. Even if Black ends up having a solid season, there is no guarantee that the Magic will be able to extendd him with their limited cap space.
Black, who is one of the hardest-working players on the team and will have a solid and productive year three in Orlando. I believe the Magic should look to open up more cap space by moving off other contracts in the near future to re-sign Black. On the other hand, we all understand the business side of things, and the Magic may decide to let him test free agency or use him as a centerpiece in a trade to continue to bolster this roster.
The Magic may opt to move in the cheaper direction long-term with Jase Richardson, assuming he develops nicely and turns into a promising three-level scorer that this team desperately needs.