Orlando Magic: 5 offseason roster moves they must make

Orlando Magic offseason move No. 4: Move on from James Ennis

After only costing the Magic a 2020 second-round draft pick, James Ennis has played a season and a half for the franchise. Unfortunately, two different leg injuries derailed his season before it began. He missed 41 games because of them.

Still, as the team’s only true small forward after the trades, Ennis got some good playing time in and was constantly on the floor closing games out. He is a tremendous voice in the locker room, which the Magic need as they have a very inexperienced group.

However, the problem is the Magic needs Ennis more than Ennis needs the Magic. If they re-sign him, they will need to pay him a longer-term deal at a higher rate than they otherwise would be inclined to. This could impact their future ability to sign a bigger-name free agent.

Ennis will be looking to maximize this deal. As he is 30 years old, Ennis has one decent deal left in the tank. He is not going to want to spend the time on a rebuilding team. He still has the talent to contribute in a bench role for a team that has the potential to contend.