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Orlando Magic: 3 big questions heading into 2018-19 NBA season

By Luke Duffy

TARRYTOWN, NY - AUGUST 12: Mo Bamba #5 of the Orlando Magic poses for a portrait during the 2018 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot on August 12, 2018 at the Madison Square Garden Training Facility in Tarrytown, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)
TARRYTOWN, NY - AUGUST 12: Mo Bamba #5 of the Orlando Magic poses for a portrait during the 2018 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot on August 12, 2018 at the Madison Square Garden Training Facility in Tarrytown, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images) /

2. To tank or not to tank?

Ever since Dwight Howard decided to up and leave in 2012, there has been no question where the Magic sat in the NBA’s pecking order. They were a rebuilding team, and they lost games accordingly.

That first version of the rebuild did not yield a star to build around (although Victor Oladipo would later change that narrative), nor did Orlando lose sufficiently to garner a surefire pick like Ben Simmons or Karl-Anthony Towns.

In 2012-13, the Magic went 20-62, the worst record in the league. Every year after that though, although they only won more than 30 games once (35 in 2015-16), they never had the worst record in the NBA either.

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The last two seasons, however, have given the Magic two players in Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamba who, at very least, look like modern players who will be able to help the team some.

As a result of this, and the veteran additions of last summer, it is fair to wonder if this will be the year when the Magic try to make winning a top priority again. You could argue they’ve been doing that for the last two years, but those attempts failed and the roster now has more youth than ever.

So one of the main questions surrounding Orlando’s season becomes just how exactly they should approach it. Making a run at the playoffs would please a fanbase desperate for anything at all to cheer about.

However, there may be reason to endure just one more year of mediocrity. It is no secret that their point guard depth is probably the worst in the league, and a return to the lottery to take a young player on a rookie deal who they can plan a future with may be too enticing to pass up.

Whichever direction the Magic go in this season could help define the rest of their decade.

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