Drastic Wolves trade offers important lesson for Orlando Magic’s future

Just when everyone thought the biggest moves of the summer were all finalized, the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York Knicks made headlines. Karl-Anthony Towns is headed to New York to help the Knicks’ big man depth and pair up with Jalen Brunson. Meanwhile, Donte DiVincenzo and Julius Randle are headed to Minnesota. 

When news broke that Mitchell Robinson would miss the first few months of the season, everyone knew that the Knicks would have two options: play small with Julius Randle at the five or make a trade. They opted for the second option, bringing another All-Star caliber big to the Eastern Conference. 

The Knicks addressing their biggest issue with an All-Star-level player will propose some problems for the Orlando Magic. One of the teams projected to finish on top of the Eastern Conference struggling could have been enough for the Magic to sneak up there and steal a top-4 seed. For a short while, it seemed like the Knicks might be that team. 

Instead, New York found a quick fix for its center problem, giving the Magic another big name to deal with on the court and for Paolo Banchero to compete with for an All-Star spot. 

The trade also offers an important lesson, though. 

The Magic will have to make some big decisions soon

The Minnesota Timberwolves made a big splash when they traded for Rudy Gobert and then also added Mike Conley to the roster. After initial struggles, the team figured it out and went to the Western Conference Finals behind the play of Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mike Conley, Rudy Gobert, and Jaden McDaniels. 

The Timberwolves were an expensive team that would be difficult to afford under the new tax rules. It was always clear that the only way to significantly alter the roster and add good role players would be to trade Towns. He has more trade value than Gobert, and the Timberwolves are not going to trade Anthony Edwards. Plus, Naz Reid is right there, ready to take on a bigger role. 

The lesson for the Magic here is that they need to be smart with any future moves. Orlando is in that weird space between rebuilding and becoming a contender. They have been patient so far, not making any huge moves on the trade market or in free agency. Soon enough, the Magic will have to make a move for some offensive firepower, though. 

When that time comes, the Magic will have to be careful. Once Paolo Banchero signs his rookie extension, they will already have two max players on the roster. Jalen Suggs won’t be cheap either. 

Trading for a big name just to add another star to the roster is not the way to go. If you are building an expensive team, it has to be worth it. It has to lead to winning quickly. 

Fortunately, the Magic’s front office has not made any rash decisions lately. While it can be argued that they have been too passive, the danger of the Magic making an all-in trade for someone who won’t be able to take the team to the next level quickly seems small.