Orlando Magic: Does Maurice Harkless Have A Future In Orlando?
By Luke Duffy
The Orlando Magic are a team in transition that is slowly finding its feet once more. As a result, roster and lineup changes are commonplace as this organization strives to find something that works for this team going forward. That is why it has not been uncommon to see role players get extended minutes or players accustomed to playing in one position doing something else.
Recent examples of this have been Devyn Marble getting more playing time and Channing Frye being shifted to the bench as a sixth-man type. So at a time when losses are still accepted and all players are getting a fair crack at proving they belong, why is Maurice Harkless still out in the cold?
In his third year in the league, Harkless will be a restricted free agent next year. A nice complimentary piece for the Magic his first two years in the league, he has seen his usage rate plummet dramatically this year. While he started 41 of the 80 games he played last year, he’s started just once this season in the 22 games he’s checked into. That’s quite a few DNPs.
Last season he was playing just shy of 25 minutes a night (24.4) but this year he’s only playing 14.5 minutes, that is when he even gets to play at all. Even worse, the only reason Harkless has been turned loose in those games is because of the early season injury to rookie Aaron Gordon, who himself has recently returned.
But why is this guy not getting more of a look? There seems to be no positive outcome in not playing him. As mentioned, losing is acceptable right now, and Harkless at least tried when on the court for Orlando his first two years with the team. He never really stood out on those bad teams, but he wasn’t exactly holding them back either.
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He’s a serviceable two-way player who could certainly do more on both ends, but the fact is there aren’t that many wings in the league who are good at what they do. This is why the likes of Chandler Parsons, Gordon Hayward and (eventually) Jimmy Butler have been paid handsomely. It is not a stacked position in this league.
Harkless isn’t in their class, but he’s only 21 years old and has never been awful for this team. Rumors have surfaced recently claiming Harkless is on the trading block, and if that is the case, it still makes sense to play him more. Let potential suitors see what he can do on the court.
If he truly has no future in Orlando and the top brass know that, playing him now has the potential to increase his admittedly small trade value. Looking from the outside in, it appears only to be a win-win situation.
But why not keep the guy? Of course the future needs to be kept in mind, one where the likes of Victor Oladipo and later on Elfrid Payton will need to be paid more money to stick around. Bringing back Tobias Harris after this year will also eat into the cap. So it is possible the team doesn’t want Harkless long term because they won’t be able to afford him.
His rookie season, though, when he saw the most game time, he averaged 8.2 points and 4.4 rebounds. He wasn’t even old enough to drink alcohol in most places at that point. So he has something, and it’s puzzling the Magic don’t even want to explore what that is.
In terms of trade scenarios, again it’s hard to see him bringing much back if he were let go before the trade deadline. A couple of second round picks? Possibly, but Orlando needs to begin to move away from the draft and towards adding proven players to their young core.
He’s not even worth trading for a couple of expiring contracts either, because the Magic still have plenty of money to spend. If a first round pick is on offer, it’s at least worth looking into. If the team were offered a veteran who is contracted long term, again that would be something to consider.
It just seems like he’s been given a raw deal here, despite not doing anything particularly wrong. Basketball is a business though, but from talking to Orlando fans, it seems a lot of people would be quite happy to keep him at the right price. Given his youth, lack of activity and the fact he wouldn’t fetch much on the market, there is another potential route to go with handling the guy.
Why not let him hit restricted free agency and possibly low ball him a little bit with the offer? No he doesn’t deserve that treatment, but from a business standpoint it would make sense.
If a team comes in with a better offer, good luck to him, he’s seen his role decrease year on year in Orlando anyway. But if nobody matches, why not bring him back as an energy guy for the second unit who can do a little bit of everything? Score a few points, grab a few boards and with the right coaching, make it so that he guards the most dangerous threat on opposing team’s second units.
Yeah, it might be a bit of a luxury, but contending teams are deep, and that is what the Magic want to be once more.
It’s not nice to see a player treated this way, especially when we’ve seen glimpses of what he’s done in the past before. Maybe something happened between player and management, we don’t know and we’re not going to speculate here. I’d like to see Harkless stick around and get used more.
But if that is no longer an option, turn him loose now and get what little returns are possible for a guy with plenty of upside. If it happens, the Magic could really regret letting this guy go.