Orlando Magic: 3 goals for Jerian Grant in 2018-19

1. Take over starting job

If you have been following the Magic this offseason, a lot of the writing on the wall seems to be directed at the eventual taking over of the starting point guard job by Grant. Augustin was recently ranked by our own Hoops Habit as the second-worst starting point guard in the league and is a career backup.

While I wrote in his defense, Augustin ultimately is not the future lead guard in Orlando. He’s a good stopgap option for this season but could see his starting spot taken over by the newcomer.

Grant taking over could happen based on a few things. If the Magic see this season going nowhere by All-Star break, why not throw the young guy in there for more minutes? They will probably see around the same number of minutes, just as Elfrid Payton and Augustin did last season. Could Grant take over the lion’s share to kickstart the youthful trend even more in Orlando? It wouldn’t be surprising.

Another reason to start Grant over Augustin? Defense. Grant is a ballhawk and has good size for a lead guard. At 6’4″ and 198 pounds, Jerian provides great on-ball defense at the 1, and with the new defensive trend the Magic are adopting, this could mean more minutes for him.

The consensus on Grant seems to be that he needs a team that will utilize him more than the Bulls or New York Knicks did before him. He’s an effective lead guard and still has some untapped potential.

The starting job in Orlando doesn’t seem like it’s up-for-grabs right now, but camp hasn’t started yet. If head coach Steve Clifford wants to bring a fresh approach to the team, Grant fits the bill. He will have the opportunity for extended minutes no matter what. If he can dig into his inconsistency on offense and continue his strong passing and defense, Jerian Grant can finally find an NBA home in Orlando.