Jamahl Mosley praises young guard hoping to break into Magic’s rotation 

The Orlando Magic are a deep team, and several players will have to fight for playing time throughout the season. Even last season, when the team had no pressure to win, lottery picks Anthony Black and Jett Howard struggled to carve out a consistent role. 

That is not what most lottery picks experience at the NBA level and shows just how many capable players the Magic had last season. This season is not much different. The Magic elected not to re-sign Markelle Fultz and Joe Ingles in free agency but added Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cory Joseph, and Tristan da Silva to the mix, making the team just as deep. 

A part of the rotation seems set. Jalen Suggs, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, and Wendell Carter Jr. will make up the starting lineup. Cole Anthony, Jonathan Isaac, and Moritz Wagner have minutes off the bench pretty much guaranteed. Gary Harris will probably also be in the mix as a veteran floor spacer. 

That does not leave much room in the rotation for some of the younger and less experienced Magic players. Still, fans are eager to see Anthony Black on the court. 

Playing only 69 games last season and averaging 16.9 minutes, Black had limited opportunities to display his talent, but he certainly showed potential. Especially his size and defense make him an intriguing guard prospect for the Magic. Letting go of Markelle Fultz should mean Black will get a chance to play. 

Jamahl Mosley praised Black after practice during training camp

Despite a clear focus on improving the Magic’s offense, Jamahl Mosley spent much of his media availability on Friday talking about defense. He noted that the team had to get better at defending without fouling but also praised some of his players for their ability to put pressure on the ball.

When asked about how the team would be affected by the league allowing more physicality, Mosley said, “We have a physical team, we have a strong team. We use our length, we use our athleticism … You look at, you know, KCP, you look at Jalen, you look at Anthony Black coming in, who has been fantastic, [and] their ability to guard the ball with physicality but then also knowing when and where to do it. So, it’s going to play to our advantage in some way, but we just gotta be smarter in the way in which we do it.”

Judging by the use of the word “fantastic”, Anthony Black has been doing well defensively so far and impressed Coach Mosley. It is not every day a second-year player is mentioned in the same sentence with two candidates for an All-Defensive team. 

While this is encouraging to hear for anyone who wants to see Black on the court, he will have to do more than just play defense to earn a consistent role in the Magic’s rotation. Defense is certainly important—the Magic do not play many players who cannot hold their own defensively—but Black will also have to provide some secondary playmaking and scoring. He showed promise as a 3-point shooter last season but now has to do it at a higher volume and score more than 4.6 points per game. 

The Magic will play the Pelicans on Monday in their first preseason game, giving fans a chance to see Black in action for the first time since Summer League.