Ask any player on the Orlando Magic last year who the hardest worker on the team is, and they would have inevitably said Caleb Houstan.
The forward was in and out of the rotation throughout his three seasons in Orlando. But everyone admired his work ethic and the way he stayed prepared.
Houstan became a spot starter and someone the Magic threw into the lineup when they needed some volume shooting threats, a desperate need for this team.
Houstan finally seemed to find his groove on the court to close the 2025 season. After the All-Star Break, he averaged 16.7 minutes per game and shot 50.7 percent from three on 3.3 attempts per game.
It looked like all of Houstan's hard work was finally paying off and that he could carve a spot in the Magic's rotation.
Cap realities forced the Magic to let Houstan go. And now he has fallen into the hands of one of the Magic's chief rivals in the Eastern Conference.
Houstan will sign a one-year contract with the Atlanta Hawks, according to Mike Scotto of HoopsHype, sending Houstan to one of the Magic's biggest rivals after a busy offseason for the two Southeast Division teams.
Letting Houstan go, then, could have major consequences for the team.
Free agency brought uncertainty
No one within the Orlando Magic could say a bad word about Caleb Houstan. It was clear how like he was within the locker room and how valuable his skills were.
The Magic drafted him to be a shooter. While he needed consistent minutes to find his rhythm, he mostly delivered, shooting 37.2 percent in his three years with Orlando. The Magic needed that shooting and giving up a quality shooter on a team that was the worst 3-point shooting team in the league last year was always a major risk.
The reality is that for the Magic to complete their offseason, they needed to let him loose into free agency.
Orlando needed to decline his team option to get under the tax line and gain access to the nontaxpayer mid-level exception.
As the Magic finished their aggressive summer -- acquiring Desmond Bane, signing Tyus Jones and re-signing Moe Wagner -- the Magic simply ran out of room. They did not have the cap space under the first apron hard tax to re-sign Houstan.
Using the non-taxpayer MLE to sign Jones hard capped the Magic at the first apron. They are currently projected at $1.2 million beneath the first apron. That would not have been enough room to re-sign Houstan (his minimum contract is $2.6 million, according to Spotrac).
Houstan became a sacrifice to the cap gods.
Houstan landed with a chief rival and makes them better
What was clear is that Caleb Houstan was an NBA player. He needed to find an NBA roster spot somewhere. He is too good of a shooter and too reliable a locker room presence not to find some space in the league.
As free agency began to slow to a trickle, it was clear Houstan would land somewhere. The Orlando Magic surely hoped it would not be with the Atlanta Hawks.
Like the Magic, the Hawks struggled with injuries last year and fell to the 8-seed in the East. Orlando bested Atlanta in the Play-In Tournament to earn the 7-seed. The Atlanta Hawks lost in the Play-In Tournament at home to the Miami Heat and had to sit out the Playoffs.
Both teams knew they needed to make bold moves to be competitive in the East.
The Magic delivered with their big move for Desmond Bane. The Hawks delivered too wtih a transformative offseason.
Atlanta is considered one of the clear winners of the offseason after trading for Kristaps Porzingis, signing Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard and trading down to draft Asa Newell. The Hawks will also get Jalen Johnson back from a shoulder injury after he averaged 18.9 points per game in 36 appearances last year.
The Magic have started talking in contender circles. But the Hawks are not too far behind. And with an established and experienced star in Trae Young, they cannot be counted out.
What should also stand out is that despite being 18th in 3-point field goal percentage and 17th in offensive rating last year, the Hawks have greatly improved their shooting and offensive potential. Houstan only adds to that, giving them another quality shooter off the bench.
The Eastern Conference is indeed wide open. But that does not guarantee the Magic are the ones to walk through it. Houstan adds another quality shooter to one of the Magic's chief competitors.
Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman has spoken openly about the Magic's title aspirations, but he has dismissed the thought the Magic attacked because of how open the East is. He insists the Magic are "running their own race."
Indeed, with their ages and contracts, Orlando is set up to be competitive for the long term, whereas Atlanta might be trying to cash in on this season with an older group. But the Magic undoubtedly helped a rival in cutting Houstan loose. He makes the Hawks better.
It should add some spice to an already emerging rivalry that will have big consequences throughout the Eastern Conference.