The Orlando Magic’s deficiencies at point guard are well documented, and Tomas Satoransky would be the perfect fit.
With the Orlando Magic’s offseason dreams slipping away with every damaging defeat, we can begin to wonder what their roster might look like next season. Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross will come off the books, while decisions regarding their young trio of big men may need to be discussed sooner rather than later.
It is clear the Magic need a point guard, and with the 2019 NBA Trade Deadline edging closer and no sign of Dennis Smith Jr. bursting through the doors to save their faltering campaign, a contingency plan needs to be made.
That’s where Tomas Satoransky, the current backup point guard of the Washington Wizards, comes in. The more you look at him, the clearer it becomes that he is a player they should try extremely hard to acquire.
This is the second year in a row that injury has forced All-Star John Wall off the court and put Satoransky in the starting lineup. Last season, the Wizards adopted an “everybody eats” mantra when Wall went down, and they benefited from it.
They looked a much more cohesive unit once Wall was out of the picture, but more than that, the sounds of discontent around the franchise quietened. On the court everybody looked happier to be more involved, including Bradley Beal, who himself has become more valuable to Wall for the Wizards.
You could put this down to some kind of fluke, or even proof that Wall is a tough character to play with. The latter is probably true to some extent. But the same circumstances have unfolded again, and since Satoransky was inserted into the starting lineup, the Wizards are 8-5.
Is this all down to the point guard? No, but he is a pass-first guard with great awareness who can make 3-pointers too, hitting at a 41.7 percent clip so far this season. At 6’7″, Satoransky has great height for the position as well. That’s all well and good, but why should the Magic be so determined to get him?
There are better players out there, and they should absolutely put an offer in for a borderline All-Star like D’Angelo Russell. But the Brooklyn Nets are likely to match any offers, and top-tier free agents don’t typically come to Orlando unless there is clear star power already in place.
Satoransky is a restricted free agent himself, but because the Wizards are paying Wall an insane $207 million up until 2023, they would be far less inclined to match a sizable offer sheet from the Magic. They can’t afford to plug so much money into their point guard rotation, and still have guys like Beal and Otto Porter Jr. making large sums of money too.
John Wall has agreed to the designated player veteran exception in Washington, per source, that will pay him a total of $207M through 2023.
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) July 22, 2017
Even center Ian Mahinmi is on the books for $15 million next season. The Wizards are not in a flexible place financially, and they seem a prime target to strike. On the subject of whether or not Satoransky could play with the young core already in place, we have already seen that he is happy to defer to other guys in order to get them going.
He is a player who takes what the defense gives him and doesn’t force his own shot up over including others. Friday night saw the Magic lose to the Wizards, and although Satoransky had only nine points, he had eight assists to go with it.
The night before, on a nationally televised game, he had 20 points and 10 assists in 39 minutes in a loss to the Golden State Warriors. Satoransky has seen his minutes rise from 15.7 per game in the month of November, to 33.3 per game so far in January.
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Before going down with injury, Wall had had 10 games with double-digit assists. Satoransky has done this three times in his last seven games. It makes sense then, that the Wizards look like a more fluid outfit, even without Wall’s individual talent.
Satoransky is only 27 years old, so in theory should only be about to hit his prime. Unlike other players like Mike Conley, his age matches more closely with the likes of Aaron Gordon, Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamba.
They are a few years away from being a certified playoff group, but assuming they get there, Satoransky will also be in his prime too. Even if the Magic somehow land Smith or draft a promising rookie this summer, they should still make an offer to Satoransky.
He is used to backing up Wall and is one of the most underrated backups in the league at this stage. If the Magic could turn their guard rotation from their biggest weakness to a point of strength, there’s little doubt they’d make the playoffs next year.
It makes a ton of sense for the Orlando Magic to try and sign Tomas Satoransky this coming offseason. He fits on every level, and it wouldn’t cost the organization a lot of money to get him either.
It wouldn’t be the kind of move that made huge headlines. There might even be some fans who see it as a weak signing. But with no clear star players to build around (assuming Vucevic doesn’t re-sign in the offseason), the Magic need to fill out their roster with as much under-the-radar talent as they can.
Tomas Satoransky can be that guy, a low-risk move that pays high dividends as a result of his ability to be both a starter or a backup, his shooting and his desire to get teammates going as much as possible.