Orlando Magic: Ranking their top 5 offseason signings
By Luke Duffy
1. Jonathon Simmons
The obvious choice here, it’s still not clear exactly how Jonathon Simmons will fit into becoming a go-to player for a team.
San Antonio Spurs fans were sad to see him go, and you only need to watch one game of his from last season to see how hard he tries on defense and how much he talks and communicates.
Averages of 6.2 points and 2.1 rebounds per game on 29.4 percent shooting from three-point range certainly don’t jump off the page at you.
But the general consensus is that Simmons had such a refined role with the Spurs, particularly defensively, that he only got the chance to show what he could do offensively in small doses.
At 27 years old, he’s likely a bit older than some might think, but he’s only played 2,205 NBA minutes total in his career.
To give you some indication of how little that is, Brandon Roy played more minutes in three out of his five seasons in the league (we’re not counting those five games with the Minnesota Timberwolves).
A late bloomer, Simmons also averaged 10.5 points per game in the playoffs last season, with a three-point percentage of 35.1 percent.
Next: The biggest winners and losers of 2017 NBA free agency
He gives Orlando Magic fans legitimate reason to be excited, even if his numbers don’t reflect this yet. But will it be enough to lead this rejuvenated roster back to the playoffs?