Orlando Magic: Complete grades for the 2019 NBA offseason
By Luke Duffy
Re-signed Khem Birch
If bringing back Nikola Vucevic was a risk, inking Kem Birch to a two-year, $6 million contract was anything but. When Mohamed Bamba went down with a season-ending leg injury last year, it was Birch who stepped into his minutes and the franchise improved noticeably as a result.
They had a defensive rating of 102.7 when he was on the court during the regular season, compared to 107.6 (eighth in the league) on the year as a whole.
He received some recognition from the media and was the force defensively that was needed to help push them into the playoffs.
https://twitter.com/OrlandoMagic/status/1153808149687631872
If anything the only concern here is that Birch won’t get the time he deserves on the court. Vucevic has to play and Bamba is the young player who they are investing in. He has appeared to return the favor as well with how he’s looking these days.
Again, his contract represents value and it can be easily moved if there is just no place for him in the rotation.
He is the perfect insurance policy should anything happen to Vucevic or Bamba for long stretches and as of right now is the best defender of the three. He is a no-nonsense player who doesn’t speak out in the media about a lack of playing time and only ever has positive things to say.
In short, he’s the type of player you want to have around as you grow.
Still only 26 himself, the best is surely yet to come from Birch. The fact that this won’t be happening for another organization is a small win for the Orlando Magic, Birch being a much cheaper alternative to other rim-running bigs like Clint Capela and DeAndre Jordan.
A great move to bring him back.