Orlando Magic: Should They Even Want Eighth Seed?

It’s no secret that the Orlando Magic are already an improved team over the one that ended last season with a 25-57 record. Adding an exciting rookie in Mario Hezonja, serviceable veterans like CJ Watson and a head coach in Scott Skiles means this team is headed in the right direction. More than that, growth from within by the likes of Nikola Vucevic and Victor Oladipo mean the Magic are sure to be a tougher team to beat next year.

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While other teams have also improved, if this team continues growing to it’s potential, they could absolutely sniff a playoff spot next season. This may seem optimistic (I still feel it may be the year after next when we truly see a run for a playoff spot) but in the weaker Eastern Conference if this team begins the season the right way and is in contention by around the All-Star break, they can make the postseason.

You might think it’s foolish to think this way, but if you haven’t been watching this team intently for a couple of years now then you should, as they have such an interesting core stuffed with potential. In any event, would making the playoffs next season actually be a good thing? Or would it more likely lead to a first round sweep and a trip back to the drawing board to become a better team as a whole?

Obviously fans like to see a winning product on the floor. This is especially true for Magic fans who saw their team move into a new state of the art arena, only to then watch franchise player Dwight Howard skip town. The result has been a couple of years of lots of empty seats at games and a whole lot of losses. While this team is beginning to look like an above average defensive outfit, some of what they do offensively can be ugly on any given night.

So of course a playoff run, albeit a short one, would get some of the more casual fans back onside. Winning is the one factor that truly gets people excited. You only need to look at the sudden resurgence of Cleveland Cavaliers gear or Golden State Warriors jerseys popping up everywhere from Las Vegas to Galway, Ireland (I’ve seen Stephen Curry jerseys in both locations in the last three weeks) to know that this is the case.

The Magic wouldn’t be winning on that scale, but the playoffs are the most exciting time of the year. How great would it be to see Oladipo and Elfrid Payton go up against the Chicago Bulls or Cavaliers over a seven game series when it really matters? It would be great for the young players on the roster to get some valuable postseason experience, as they will likely be the leaders of future teams with more lofty aspirations in Orlando.

It all sounds so great in theory, but of course making the postseason would mean not being a part of the NBA Lottery process. While this team has it’s core in place and doesn’t necessarily need much more to add to it (although some, including me, would feel differently about that) can you really turn down cheap young talent? The prospect of adding another rookie to an affordable four-year deal at the expense of playing an extra four or five games a season is one that is difficult to turn down.

Again, some feel that winning creates a positive atmosphere and in turn more winning. If the Magic were to sneak into the playoffs next season, it would likely mean that players such as Oladipo and Tobias Harris stepped up in such a way that they will be able to get this team right back to that position again with only a little extra help. But you only need to look at a team like the Boston Celtics, to see how making the playoffs can be counterproductive.

They made the postseason last year as the seventh seed, and were sort of a feel-good story as head coach Brad Stevens, one of the brightest young minds in all of basketball, led his unique blend of talent into the first round. Without a clear-cut star, although some feel Isaiah Thomas can be that guy given an extended run with a team to prove himself, the Celtics fell in four games to the Cavaliers.

Just like that the feel-good vibes were gone, and by the time the conference finals rolled around most had forgotten about the plucky Celtics. They also drafted outside the lottery as a result of their exploits in getting to the postseason in the first place. So really, was it all worth it? Was packing out the TD Garden for two losses against a superior team worth missing out on a lottery level talent young player who would be with the team for the long term?

At a time when it is now harder than ever to keep a group of players together, those long contracts take on even more value. Yet Boston missed out on a chance to add lottery level talent to their roster (Although they are a somewhat unique case in that they have/had a bundle of draft picks as a result of various trades). The Magic own most of their upcoming picks (they did trade a second rounder to take on Shabazz Napier, a move Payton couldn’t have been too thrilled about) so it is something to think about.

As crazy as it may seem to root against them, perhaps missing the playoffs next season would be the most beneficial to this Magic team in the long term. As it is, getting there won’t be easy anyway, everybody from the Indiana Pacers to the New York Knicks have improved in some way. But if they miss out, they will be able to add another player, who in turn could be packaged together to obtain a second-tier star for this organization.

Remember, we’re getting kind of close to the make or break stage with this group now. Vucevic and Harris have signed second deals here, Oladipo surely will after next year too. But with that as their core, this team would want to start seeing a marked improvement, or make the necessary trades to ensure this team does not get stuck in basketball purgatory. A playoff appearance next season may ironically bring just that, short-term progress in lieu of their long-term goals. Is that really what you would want for this team?

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