Despite being a young team, a few individuals on the Orlando Magic’s roster come into the 2018-19 season under some pressure.
While the Orlando Magic had a decent offseason and drafted another exciting prospect in Mohamed Bamba, only a hardcore fan would believe they have any hopes of making the postseason this year.
The Eastern Conference may be more unpredictable, and certainly weaker than the West, but Orlando is still near the bottom of the pecking order there. Talk of them now being the best team in Florida is also not quite true just yet.
While the expectations are still modest, there is also no doubt they have finally entered the next stage of their rebuild. It has taken over six years, but a young core is in place, as well as capable veterans.
Unfortunately, the Magic are bringing in another head coach in Steve Clifford in what will be his first season in Orlando, the sixth head coach they’ve had since 2012. This is a hit to any continuity they may have had under former coach Frank Vogel.
Then again, it did seem like a change was needed in this area to get the Magic to continue growing. With this growth comes the reality that more will be expected from certain players.
More than that, given the direction the organization is going, it is fair to wonder if some players are playing for their futures in Orlando as well. Here are the three players under the most pressure coming into 2018-19.