Kentavious Caldwell-Pope "steps ahead" in first practices with Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic made one of the biggest free agent signings in the offseason when they acquired Kentavious Caldwell-Pope this offseason.

The veteran wing is the kind of shooter the team desperately needs to give the team some spacing. His championship experience was supposed to give the team something of an edge they were missing after their first foray into the Playoffs.

And, of course, his defense was supposed to be top-notch. He would give the Magic another potential all-defensive team player to add to their collection and identity.

Caldwell-Pope seemed like a perfect fit. He was eager to get started.

"It's always good to have something new in your life I would say," Caldwell-Pope said after his first practice Tuesday. "Just being here, I'm as excited as I can be. I'm ready to get back at it. Training camp went great. I had a great day. I feel great. I'm ready and excited."

Of course, nobody knows how a player will fit in until they arrive.

A new player on a new roster is a new element. Especially on a team that feels fairly established after playing together for much of the past three years, nobody knows how he or the team is going to react.

Just because Caldwell-Pope seems like a great fit on paper does not make it one in reality. There is a lot of work to fit in a new player, even if it seems and should be so seamless.

Caldwell-Pope said Tuesday he is still learning what the team wants to do on offensive and defense. He is still getting down where to be offensively and how to get to his spots to do all the things he was so good at with the Denver Nuggets and made him a valuable player.

Even in two days of practice though, the Magic already feel Caldwell-Pope's impact. They already see the edge they were hoping to gain. They already feel how he will fit into this team.

Caldwell-Pope is ahead of the curve, as you would expect any key veteran to be. And that is helping the Magic grow quickly.

"He's just being himself, being super vocal, doing all the little things," Paolo Banchero said after Tuesday's first practice. "Picking his brain in the practice, I can tell me and his communication is going to be vital for our team and our success as well as him communicating with everybody else. The stuff he is seeing out there is usually one or two steps ahead. Just trying to use him as a vessel to learn and realize what's going on."

The Magic are certainly leaning on Caldwell-Pope's experience for a lot of things. That is evident early in camp even as he integrates into his team.

Orlando got its first real scrimmage work in during Wednesday's practice session. And the impact Caldwell-Pope can make is pretty evident to them (the scrimmages are not open to the media).

Caldwell-Pope is getting glowing reviews from everyone from his work on the court to what he is doing on the sidelines during drills.

Caldwell-Pope is already showing why the Magic signed him

"I think Paolo hit it right in the head," coach Jamahl Mosley said after practice Wednesday. "He just knows where to be on the floor. It goes back to the fact has played with some of the game's best players. He understands the spacing, the time to cut, time to move to find the open window so they can pass him the basketball. Defensively, he is always in the right position. That's what comes and that's the experience and why we brought him here. He knows how to communicate those positions to guys."

Caldwell-Pope will be a big part of this team. That is not simply a factor of the three-year, $66-million deal he signed this offseason. The Magic targeted him as someone to complement their team.

His impact typically goes beyond his stats—just 10.1 points per game and 40.6 percent shooting from three on 4.1 attempts per game. The Magic are hoping the threat of his shooting gives them more space in addition to him hitting more threes. It is not clear yet if he will increase his volume from deep.

He has also built his reputation as an excellent defender. And the Magic are eager to see him pair with Jalen Suggs to form one of the best defensive backcourts in the league. Everyone knows that will be a good backstop.

And if Caldwell-Pope is good at anticipating and staying ahead of the curve defensively as everyone is suggesting through two days of camp, then he will fit into the team's defensive identity quickly.

At this point in practice, the Magic are more focused on their fundamentals and the basics of what they plan to do rather than anything overly complex. It is still early in training camp.

Caldwell-Pope is making his presence known in every way the Magic hoped the veteran would.

"I think Kenny is super great," Franz Wagner said after practice Wednesday. "We're doing stations and Kenny is always talking to guys individually or the smaller groups and the stuff that he sees and the things he has been through in his career. I think that will help us a lot."

Wagner said Caldwell-Pope is already taking players under his wing and giving them instruction through drills. His influence is already pretty clear.

The Magic are hoping to gain from his experience of winning two titles. That is one of the reasons they brought him into the team. And it seems already to be rubbing off as the Magic work their way through the early days of camp.