STUFF the Orlando Magic could do… without trading Elfrid, Aaron, or Mario
The sixth overall pick in this year’s draft, Evan Fournier, Nikola Vucevic, Terrence Ross, Bismack Biyombo, DJ Augustin, #25, #33, #35 and all future picks for the Orlando Magic make up the assets in the half-full cupboard of contracts signed in this era’s cap boom leftover by Rob Hennigan. Not mentioned are the three remaining draftees from the Henny Youth Project: Elfrid Payton, Aaron Gordon, and #PaperMario💸 Hezonja. These players mean a lot to Orlando’s fan base; fighting a half-decade of defeat, the effort continuosly applied from Elfrid, AG, and Mario, in addition to Vucevic, Fournier, Victor Oladipo, and Tobias Harris in years past, inspired hope into a city yearning for some. For The 6th Man, the young trio means too much; let’s take a look at five situations where the Magic can make a logical move without giving up anybody who participated in what might possibly be the greatest no-look, hockey assist, off-the-back-board, alley-oop in Orlando Magic History:
There are plenty of amazing talents in the 2017 NBA Draft. Only Markelle Fultz and Josh Jackson seem to be worth considering trading up for; Boston will demand a king’s ransom for #1 overall, and the Lakers and Sixers won’t be easy to convince to trade down from their 2nd and 3rd overall picks, respectively. The Magic could even trade down, looking to swoop up the Kings’ two first round picks, or perhaps deal with the teams in the 11–15 range who are all stuck somewhere between edging into the playoffs and rebuilding on the fly. Maybe Orlando gets out of this star-loaded draft completely, perhaps moving for an even brighter star rising over the horizon.
The Sixers receive: #6, #33, #35, DJ Augustin
The Magic receive: #3, Gerald Henderson
Philadelphia has already processed three potential cornerstone front-court players in Joel Embiid, Dario Saric, and Ben Simmons through the draft; although they are most interested in bringing in the best prospect available with the third pick, the Sixers may not see much more value there than only three spots lower at six. Throw in two more shots at the dartboard of a deep draft and a cap rules-matching 3pt marksmen who balances the starting unit well as a veteran presence in DJ Augustin, and the Philadelphia 76ers could be open to trading down from their pick while shedding Gerald Henderson’s salary…in the process...
Would the 76ers rather Terrence Ross, Evan Fournier, or the Magic’s 25th pick thrown in the deal? Sure, but Orlando should be able to negotiate their way down to a handful of prospects and a player who fits nicely next to Phili’s core. Orlando moves up in the draft for obvious reasons; if the new captains of the Magic’s front office crew, Jeff Weltman and John Hammond, value Josh Jackson over the field at 3, trading a contract liability and two second rounders to get “the guy” is a small price to pay for immediate satisfaction.
The Kings receive: #6, #33, #35, Nikola Vucevic
The Magic receive: #5, #10, Georgios Papagiannis, Kosta Koufos
The Kings get the big man who’s eluded them since the never-ending Boogie Cousins trade rumor cycle ran its course; the Magic continue their rebuild by throwing a second lottery prospect into the mix who could develop into an elite talent. The Kings most likely still retain De’Aaron Fox with the sixth pick, assuming the Magic lock down Jayson Tatum, Jonathan Isaac, or Dennis Smith Jr. in the pick prior. Orlando swoops a solid big man prospect, Georgios Papagiannis, in the process of taking on unwanted salary, Kosta Koufos, from Sacramento, while Vlade buys a second round of shots in the draft. With the 5th and 10th picks under the helm, the Magic would pair up two of whomever is still on the board between Tatum, JIsaac, DSJ, Josh Jackson, Malik Monk, Frank Ntilikina, and Lauri Markkannen. A rebuilding central florida squad would swap a solid asset in Vucevic and two second rounders for a pick swap, a big man prospect and an additional chance at a franchise cornerstone; the Kangz’ decision lies in their evaluation of how they view Vuc as the base down low.
The Lakers receive: Nikola Vucevic, DJ Augustin
The Magic receive: Deangelo Russell, Timofey Mozgov
The Lakers are heavily rumored to be enamored with Lonzo Ball as the point guard of their future, with only De’Aaron Fox really making headlines as another option with their pick, which was possibly just a smoke screen by Fox’s agent. With Lonzo at the 1 and Magic Johnson saying Brandon Ingram is the only “untouchable” on the roster, Los Angeles’ collection of young prospects including Julius Randle, Jordan Clarkson, and Deangelo Russell are available. Julius remains a nice fit for Luke Walton’s Golden State South system, and Clarkson is locked up on a cheap $13M/year deal over the next few years; if D-Loading can be had at the right price, Vucevic may just be the counterpart to make it happen. On paper, Nikola is a perfect fit for the Lakers next to Julius in the front-court.
As for why the Magic would consider Deangelo Russell, the former 2nd overall pick has proven to be a force on the offensive end in this league already, with plenty of room to grow. Deangelo’s size, playmaking, handles, shooting reach, and understanding of the nuances of the game permits Russell to play the 1 or the 2, creating smooth backcourt possibilities with Elfrid Payton, Evan Fournier, Terrence Ross, and whomever the Magic select with the sixth pick. Taking on the last three years of Mozgov’s backup center contract is a small pill to swallow as long as there’s a renewed faith in Bismack starting at center from Orlando’s new-look front office. Deangelo could start at the 1 or 2, or even play 6th man directing the second unit for the time being; D-Loading is worth the wait.
The Trailblazers receive: Bizmack Biyombo, Terrence Ross
The Magic receive: #15, Allen Crabbe, Moe Harkless, Meyers Leonard
This trade is a little rambunctious; let’s dive in. Portland is looking to create cap space for a splashy signing to join their exciting core of Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum, and Jusuf Nurkic. After this transaction, the Blazers generate roughly $10M in salary cap room, swapping out two bad contracts for two slightly more valuable ones by attaching Moe Hark and the fifteenth pick; Portland would now feature a rotation sporting their core three plus Aminu, Turner, Bizmack, Ross, and the fancy free agent x they spend their newfound $25M in cap room on, along with the selections in Portland’s t lesser two 1st round picks.
The Magic give up two rotation players for an additional chance in the draft and a handful of guys who are relatively just as good. Orlando ties up its cap space in a weak summer of realistic free agents and adds opportunity to find a stud in the deepest draft in years. Elfrid, Evan, Mario, Aaron, and Nikola Vucevic with Crabbe, Harkless, and Leonard make up a nice young group of role players who may be used to build around the potential diamonds in the rough to be found at sixth, fifteenth, twenty-fifth, thirty-third, and thirty-fifth in the draft.
The Hornets receive: #35, Nikola Vucevic
The Magic receive: #11, Miles Plumlee
Charlotte’s core hasn’t had a top-notch scoring center down low since Big Al Jefferson was in town; Vucevic balances out the Hornets’ starting unit nicely. The Magic are rebuilding; this means fans will have to be open to moves that are strictly business decisions, even if they don’t make a ton of sense at the time. Securing the 11th pick in this special draft could turn out to have changed the Magic’s direction as a franchise when looking back through the lenses of hindsight; trading one of our “most valuable assets” at the time to land someone with even higher potential must be done if that’s the best path for an All-NBA caliber player.
Basically, Orlando throws in a second round pick to get the deal done, as Charlotte isn’t as low on the third Plumlee brother as everyone else. The Magic pick up a second lottery pick of which Orlando could easily find value, especially if one of the projected big board top picks begins to slip. Could the Magic luck out with Jonathan Isaac at 6 and Frank Ntilikina at 11? What if they swooped DSJ with the sixth while Lauri Markkanen slips to eleventh?
The Orlando Magic have a ton in store for this summer; hopefully Elfrid, Mario, and Aaron don’t go on sale.
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