Even the most skeptical critics of the Orlando Magic concede there is a dangerous team hidden inside it.
When the team can get things clicking on all cylinders, they have the difficult front-court matchups that Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner provide. They have Desmond Bane's dangerous three-point shooting. They have a frenzied and physical defense that is not afraid to dish out punishment.
The problem for the Magic has been getting all those pieces working at the same time. It has been maximizing the roster and making the puzzle pieces fit. And, most importantly, the problem is scaling up and down to adjust to injuries.
Jalen Suggs remains a mystery at the heart of this question for the Magic. He is a player who has a clear statistical impact on the team's defense and makes so many players better, lifting lineups in the team's chosen and preferred identity.
But there still seems to be something left on the table offensively. He has struggled to make a clear impact. He has struggled to be a great 3-point shooter and give the Magic the spacing they desperately need. And then he has dropped the ball even further in the Playoffs.
The trick has been to find the right role for Suggs and the right way to use him, tempering his eccentricities and his eagerness to go and make home run plays while also letting him play free and impact the game.
How Suggs plays within Sean Sweeney's new offense is the biggest question and the biggest wild card for this team. The Magic must maximize Suggs' offensive impact. And there are already a few clear ways to do that.
Where Suggs succeeds
For all the hand-wringing about Jalen Suggs entering this season, he is coming off his second-best season in his career from a purely statistical standpoint. From games played (57), points per game (13.8), and even 3-point field goal percentage (33.9 percent). He averaged a career-high in assists per game.
Despite all the numbers that suggest Suggs makes every lineup he is in better, Suggs still seems to need to do more. His playoff performance -- 11.1 points per game and 29.9 percent shooting and 24.1 percent from three on 7.7 attempts per game -- did not help him heading into the offseason.
There are still areas where Suggs succeeds. And those are noteworthy.
While he is not a strong 3-point shooter, he has the volume (a team-high 6.3 attempts per game last year) to be a top 3-point shooter.
And his and the Orlando Magic's best games often come when he has a flurry of threes -- think the 5-for-9 3-point shooting along with his chaotic defense in the runaway win at home against the LA Clippers. He would still have a lot of heavy-attempt games where he was not making enough.
There is some measure of what the Magic need from Suggs. If he wants to be a 3-point shooter, the Magic need to use him in a specific way.
One area that things can work is in his spot-up shooting.
Through all the frustrations with his shooting, Suggs shot 39.3 percent on 3.8 3-point catch-and-shoot attempts per game. In 2025, he shot 33.6 percent on 4.3 attempts per game. In 2024, he shot 40.7 percent on 3.8 attempts per game.
In the games before and including Paolo Banchero's groin injury in November, Suggs averaged 12.3 points per game and shot 42.1 percent from three. From that injury to Suggs' hip injury in December, Suggs averaged 17.8 points per game as his role increased and shot 28.9 percent from three.
The signs are that Suggs is far better as a catch-and-shoot and spot-up option from deep. Anything off the dribble gets much dicier.
That is part of the issue for the Magic as a whole. They dealt with a massive number of injuries to their best player. It pushed Suggs into playing more on the ball. And that led to his frustrations and struggles.
He was asked to do too much. Simplifying his responsibilities and where his shots come from will be the biggest key.
While the Magic would benefit from his playmaking, his efficiency decreased as they relied on him to score more.
The Magic's big issue is that when everything is in place, the team works well. Suggs works as a spot-up option.
The solution seems to be minimizing Suggs' on-ball responsibilities or the kinds of shots he hunts it he key. He is a pretty good catch-and-shoot player.
Finding the right role
Jalen Suggs is undoubtedly indispensable to the Orlando Magic.
His defense changes everything for the Magic. Orlando was at its best with Suggs on the floor for most of the season. There is a place for Suggs. He is critical to the team.
But the difference between winning and losing in the Playoffs is often the tiniest margin. And Suggs has struggled to find the role that maximizes all the good things he does without indulging his weaknesses.
At this point, the Magic should understand that he is not the lead scorer or off-the-bounce scorer they hoped for when they drafted him. He is not someone who should be taking pull-up threes or attacking too often. There is not much offense to build around him.
His best play comes from playing off of players like Paolo Banchero or Franz Wagner and hitting stand-still threes. When he does that, the Magic suddenly have two guards who can space the floor effectively.
That is the role the Magic want to carve for Suggs.
A new offensive system with Sean Sweeney may put him in that kind of a context.
More than that, he should be fully healthy this season. Suggs was coming off the knee surgery last year. He was not cleared to play until before opening night. A fully healthy summer could help him improve his game entering this season.
Suggs is best as a secondary role player. That will help the Magic get a lot out of a player who is still at the emotional heart for this team.
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