Orlando Magic: Pursue David Lee

Now that the NBA Finals have ended and the confetti has been swept from the floor, the other 28 teams in the league can once again make some news by engaging in some activity ahead of the new season. Already we have seen examples of this, with the Los Angeles Clippers moving quickly to secure the services of Lance Stephenson.

The Orlando Magic will look to make moves leading up to the NBA Draft later this month, and there’s a large variety of ways they can approach adding new players to their team.

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One such guy who may be worth inquiring about is David Lee of the Golden State Warriors. Lee, a former All-Star, played a relatively small, but still important, role in the Warriors’ championship run. Injury took him out of the starting lineup early in the year, and he never recovered the majority of his minutes or starting berth because of the emergence of Draymond Green.

To Lee’s credit however, he never bemoaned the fact his role had been shrunk, and dutifully came off the bench when asked to and provided points and rebounds. Now that the season is done however, he has expressed a desire to be traded so as to play a bigger part in the future of another team. No problem with that, and again the way he has handled himself here has been admirable.

So with all of this information, you may be wondering where exactly the Magic fit into all of this? They are a rebuilding team that needs the addition of multiple players to truly make any noise in this league.

Lee is just coming off his first title, so why would he want to take multiple steps back and join a team that hasn’t won more than 30 games in a season since Dwight Howard skipped town?

Well, the word is that the Warriors will do everything they can to accommodate Lee’s request to play a bigger role on another team. It just so happens that the Magic are desperate for talent, and some familiar faces in their kit to hype the future.

Lee may never again be an All-Star, but he’s still a capable forward who could absolutely put up close to his best career numbers on a rebuilding team.

But why would he want to come to Orlando? And what do they have that could entice the Warriors to engage them in trade discussions? Starting with Lee, Orlando is a great place to live, so there is that.

He’s just won a championship and so perhaps what he wants out of basketball for the immediate future has changed. (There is no basis to think this, but having won a title, perhaps he’d like some long-term financial security and the knowledge that he will be a key part of a team’s future).

Basketball players have to have an element of selfishness to them after all, this sport is a business. Lee just took a backseat en route to a championship and that’s great for both him and the Warriors. Now though his priorities may have changed. Now it could be about being one of the best players on another team while also playing a lot more than last season.

So that’s what this team can offer him. The chance to be a key part in their future. In terms of the Warriors themselves and what they can gain from all of this, that is a little bit trickier. The Warriors need to take some dollars off the wage bill if they want to have any hope of not paying the luxury tax, but they may not even mind having to do that.

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However, Lee is in line to make more than $15 million next year, not the kind of money you pay for a bench player.

That is however, the kind of money the Magic could spend on a player, and in return they could give up a whole host of interesting pieces. The Channing Frye experiment never really worked in Orlando, and he’s a stretch four who can shoot the three ball.

A player of that length and ability could get some minutes off the bench in the Warriors’ rotation, whether they are playing small ball or a more traditional lineup.

Other than that, there are some expiring contracts that could be tossed in, while the rarely used Maurice Harkless is a cheap role player. The same could also be said of Kyle O’Quinn or Dewayne Dedmon. Look, these players aren’t exactly highly sought after, but the end of Golden State’s rotation wasn’t good last season either.

With the depth they had, however, that wasn’t a problem. So a couple of cheap bodies who can fit into the Warriors’ unique styles of play could interest them.

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Draft picks are another avenue this team could go down, although Lee is 31 and his value isn’t what it once was. A couple of second-round picks and some players? No problem, this team needs recognizable talent to climb the Eastern Conference. I would absolutely not trade the fifth pick in this year’s draft, no way.

General manager Rob Hennigan has been reluctant to let first-rounders go since taking the job, and it’s a smart way to approach building a team.

But a first-round pick in the next year or two, or even three; I’d be willing to accept that to accelerate this rebuild. Imagine pairing Lee with Nikola Vucevic up front. Defensively they would have some poor nights but their two skills sets combined would cause a lot of problems for opponents.

The only drawback of course, would be no three point shooting from both those positions, which is an issue when you consider this team’s backcourt (Elfrid Payton and Victor Oladipo) are not yet close to being prolific in that area either.

But look, you need talent to win in this league, and it appears that Golden State are going to try their best to help Lee land on his feet with his next move. A nice gesture from them, given how he played a small, but significant part in their championship run. A trade to the Magic means they wouldn’t be giving him to one of their direct rivals either, a plus for Golden State.

This appears to be a time when a bargain could be sniffed out though. If some role players and some draft picks (Even a first rounder) are what it takes to get a two time All-Star on board, I say go for it. Couple that with the incoming fifth pick in the draft and the young core already in place, and the future suddenly looks brighter than at any point over the last three years.

Lee only has one year left on his deal, too, so worst-case scenario he leaves after next season and that money can be allocated to another target. What’s not to like?

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