Proposed 3-team trade to boost Magic doesn’t even address Orlando’s biggest issues

When the 2024 offseason first started, the Magic were involved in a lot of mock trades, sending a big name to Orlando. Everyone was seemingly waiting for the Magic to go after a point guard like Trae Young, Anfernee Simons, or Donovan Mitchell. Instead, the Magic signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and made sure to keep most of their own free agents around. That put a stop to most wild mock trades. 

Now, they seem to be back. Recently, Bleacher Report’s Eric Picus came up with a new three-team mock trade to “boost” the Magic and the Indiana Pacers: 

Magic get: Dorian Finley-Smith (from Nets), Isaiah Jackson (from Pacers), $2 million trade exception (Caleb Houstan) 

Pacers get: Wendell Carter Jr. (from Magic) 

Nets get: Jarace Walker (from Pacers), Caleb Houstan (from Magic), $14.9 million trade exception (Finney-Smith) 

This trade idea is different from most mock trades thrown the Magic’s way over the summer because it does not send a star to Orlando. Instead, it is meant to bolster the team’s depth. 

The Magic are rather thin at the forward spots and Dorian Finney-Smith could provide a veteran presence, defense, and hopefully floor spacing off the bench. He has struggled from three these past three seasons but was a good shooter before that, shooting over 39 percent in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. 

The assets the Magic would be giving up in this trade are not unrealistic either. Caleb Houstan doesn’t have a spot in the Magic’s rotation and does not seem to be a part of their long-term future and Wendell Carter Jr. is the most expendable of the starters. The Magic would only trade Carter Jr. if they got a center in return, which they also do in this mock trade. 

That’s where the logic seemingly ends, though. Isaiah Jackson is not the right center to deal Carter Jr. for. Never averaging more than 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game and lacking a 3-point shot, he is far from an upgrade over Carter Jr. The Magic have a deep center rotation and Goga Bitadze has already shown that he can step into the starting lineup and play well. 

Still, it doesn’t seem that the Magic would trade Wendell Carter Jr. for two reserves and start Jonathan Isaac at center, as Pincus suggested. The Magic already tried that in the playoffs and quickly gave up on the experiment. With Isaac at the starting center spot, the team struggled on the boards and could not deal with Jarrett Allen.

There are other concerns as well, though. 

The mock trade does nothing to address the Magic’s most pressing issues

Trading one of your team’s established starters is not a small deal. Even if Wendell Carter Jr. is the most easily replaceable Magic starter, it doesn’t seem like the front office would move him unless they are sure it is the right move to push the Magic to the next level. This is not it. 

This mock trade does nothing to address the Magic’s most pressing issues. The Magic need 3-point shooting, playmaking, offensive creation, and maybe an upgrade at the center spot. This mock trade offers none of these. 

Dorian Finney-Smith has a reputation as a 3-and-D forward but his shooting percentages have dipped significantly in recent years. He went from shooting 39.5 percent from three in the 2021-22 season to averaging 35.5, 30.6, and 34.8 percent the following three seasons. Meanwhile, Isaiah Jackson is a non-shooter and, as mentioned, not an upgrade over Carter Jr. 

Neither one is much of a playmaker either. While the Magic could use some depth at the forward spot, especially considering Jonathan Isaac’s injury history, that is not enough to trade Carter Jr. for. Plus, sending Carter Jr. to Indiana would help a team the Magic are in direct competition with.