3 reasons Orlando Magic shouldn’t trade for DeMar DeRozan
By Luke Duffy
2. DeRozan’s game is dated
DeMar DeRozan is an excellent scorer and has been for years, averaging 19.9 points in his career to date. It is the manner in which he scores them, however, that would not work for the Orlando Magic.
They need much more offensive output, of that there is no question. But DeRozan is arguably the last great mid-range operator in the league today (Chris Paul may disagree with this, if he’s reading).
The league has moved towards spacing and 3-point shooting and Kevin O’Conner of The Ringers highlighted all of the ways that the San Antonio Spurs are trapped in a bygone era, largely because of the way DeRozan plays. He would sell jerseys and get fans to tune in to Magic games, but would his antiquated scoring actually result in more wins?
DeRozan is a career 28.2 percent 3-point shooter. So far this season he has attempted only four shots from deep. He’s made none of them. Even with him on the team, the Spurs are shooting 35.4 percent from deep, right around league average. The Magic are currently the worst team in the league (29.5 percent) in arguably the most important area of this new NBA.
Can you imagine adding DeRozan to what is already in place? Even if one or both of Evan Fournier and Terrence Ross didn’t go the other way (a possibility that we will get to), the offense would be clunky to say the least. Not a lot of spacing, especially with other guys like Aaron Gordon and Al-Farouq Aminu playing alongside DeRozan.
It just doesn’t make sense. DeRozan would demand a lot of ball, but moving and passing unselfishly has been one of the few areas of the offensive game where the Magic have excelled in recent seasons. Right now they rank 22nd in assists (22.3 per game), but last season finished 12th (25.5). The ball would stick more, another trait that the modern offense should not rely on.
Yes, DeRozan would be their best option come playoff time; he has the kind of game that lends itself well to a slower pace. The Magic would lean into him and on a lot of plays he would deliver.
He would need help though and if the Raptors didn’t think he could be the best player on a championship outfit with a more veteran core around him in Toronto, why would it be any different in Orlando?