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What the Orlando Magic should do with their own free agents

Before the Orlando Magic get to free agency this weekend, they will have to first make some decisions on their own free agents and what they do with them will set up the rest of the summer.

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Before the Orlando Magic hit free agency this weekend, they have some key decisions to make about players on their own roster. What will they do with players like Moe Wagner?
Before the Orlando Magic hit free agency this weekend, they have some key decisions to make about players on their own roster. What will they do with players like Moe Wagner? / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
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Joe Ingles—$11 Million Team Option

It is still not clear what the Orlando Magic's free agency strategy is. Reporting and the rumor mill are suggesting the Magic are not looking to drop a big sack with a dollar sign on it on the table and let the cash spill out.

It feels like the Magic are trying to maintain maximum cap flexibility to move nimbly as their payroll expands with the upcoming extensions for Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero. The team is not looking to let their payroll get too far out of control.

It is why the speculation surrounding the Magic is to offer big-money deals on a short two-year deal. Exactly like the deal the Indiana Pacers signed Bruce Brown last summer (two years, $45 million) and flipped into Pascal Siakam. And exactly like the deal the Magic gave Joe Ingles last year.

Orlando gave Ingles an above-market two-year, $22-million deal. The price tag caught everyone by surprise, but the team option gave them a quick out. They spent money with the ability to pivot quickly.

That seems to be the strategy the Magic are hoping to employ with free agency. They are seeking more deals like the one they gave Ingles.

It is just unlikely that Ingles will be the one signing said deal.

Ingles gave the Magic everything they could have hoped for. He was a good veteran presence in the locker room for the Magic averaging 4.4 points per game and shooting 43.5 percent from the floor. Orlando valued his passing and his shooting but it was also clear Ingles was slowing down.

The Magic's selection of Tristan da Silva in the first round though likely means Joe Ingles' spot on the roster is taken. It feels like da Silva will replace the 17.2 minutes per game Ingles played last year. Da Silva is also a versatile forward with some shooting ability.

At this point, it feels safe to say the Magic want that extra $11 million for free agency. What was a 50/50 proposition to keep Ingles available to use in trades or as a veteran now feels like a certainty. The team will decline his option.

Prediction: Magic decline Ingles' team option

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