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Orlando Magic: 2016 Offseason Grades

By Gerald Bourguet

Oct 30, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo (5) drives to the basket as Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka (9) defends during the second half at Amway Center. Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic 139-136 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 30, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo (5) drives to the basket as Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka (9) defends during the second half at Amway Center. Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic 139-136 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Orlando Magic
Feb 5, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris (12) holds a towel over a laceration that required stitches as Victor Oladipo (5) and head coach Scott Skiles and guard Evan Fournier (left center) walk along during the second half of a basketball game at Amway Center. The Clippers won 107-93. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /

Overall

The Orlando Magic didn’t have a horrible offseason, and there’s even a chance they’ll be a better team in 2016-17 under Vogel’s tutelage. But no one should make the mistake of thinking the front office had a good summer either.

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Heading into the first season of Scott Skiles’ return to Orlando, the Magic had Tobias Harris, Victor Oladipo, Elfrid Payton, Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic on a roster that shouldn’t have been in a hurry. Internal development was the highest priority.

Less than one hectic year under Skiles later, Harris and Oladipo are gone, traded for what essentially amounted to Serge Ibaka on a one-year expiring deal, D.J. Augustin and Jeff Green. Are the Magic really better off now than they were a year ago, especially with Skiles resigning in frustration?

Let’s set the record straight: For the second time, Skiles’ disdain for Tobias Harris caused a team to sell low on his value with a trade. That trade brought back Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova — players who are both gone now, so essentially, they traded him for cap space.

And what did they use that cap space on in free agency? D.J. Augustin and Jeff Freaking Green. From a long-term and even a short-term perspective, it doesn’t get much more boneheaded than that.

Even the one young talent Orlando added to its arsenal — Biyombo — is an unclear fit in a frontcourt rotation that already includes Ibaka, Vucevic, Gordon, Green and rookie Stephen Zimmerman.

This wasn’t the NBA’s worst offseason (sorry, OKC), but it was by far the strangest. Wanting to make the playoffs is one thing, but actually providing the roster pieces needed to get there is another entirely.

Ibaka and Biyombo could bring the right mix of shooting and interior defense under a defensive-minded coach like Vogel, especially if Vucci Mane accepts a sixth man role or is traded for another go-to scorer.

But barring some astronomic leap from Fournier, Payton or Gordon, a group of newcomers featuring Ibaka, Biyombo, Augustin, Green and half a Jodie Meeks probably isn’t enough to reach the playoffs in an improved Eastern Conference.

Even with all the frustrations and inconsistencies in Oladipo’s development, it feels like the Orlando Magic might have just been better off staying patient with a young core rather than going all in on — at best — a first round playoff exit.

Grade: D+

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