With the NBA free agency period now in full swing, the Orlando Magic were not players in signing free agents and making trades. Instead, they opted to be content with all of the young players they already have on their roster, as well as their two recent lottery picks Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner.
This is a strategy that makes sense for them at this point. They have a new head coach in Jamahl Mosley, a ton of intriguing youngsters and time on their side to get this version of their rebuild right. The only exception for the Magic was the quiet acquisition of center Robin Lopez on a one-year, $5 million deal. Lopez, whose twin brother Brook won a championship with the Milwaukee Bucks this year, spent last season with the Washington Wizards.
The Orlando Magic have not been big players in NBA free agency this offseason, and the lone addition of Robin Lopez poses some questions.
Still, this is a puzzling signing in a lot of ways. Everybody knows the Magic aren’t going to be particularly competitive next year, and will once again be looking to get a high lottery pick (to pair with the one they received from the Chicago Bulls in the Vucevic trade) in order to create something sustainable in the not too distant future.
It will also be a season where coach Mosley puts in place his vision for this roster. Finally, and just as important as how Mosley fares with this squad, the battle for backcourt minutes will unfold as well. Markelle Fultz, Cole Anthony, R.J. Hampton and Suggs will all feel they deserve to take one of the two starting spots, and it will be fascinating to see how that develops. Other guards like Gary Harris? Well, they might be in trouble.
With all of this going on, and with fans sold on losing some more now as a result of the excellent job the front office is doing in forging ahead in this direction, it seems a great opportunity to sort out their center rotation as well. Mohamed Bamba is still here and showed some signs last season once Vucevic was traded, while Wendell Carter Jr. might even get extended before long.
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One of these two guys looked primed to be the long-term answer to the center position, with Carter Jr. currently in the lead. Moritz Wagner is also still on the roster, and while he may be seen as an afterthought, he is also the older brother of the recently drafted Wagner. So it may be that he is kept on the team to help his sibling settle in early on.
This brings us back to Lopez. Teams have to spend their money somehow, and with all of the competition for minutes at the guard position, it was never going to be there. Having serviceable “3-and-D” players is all well and good and the Magic could do with some of that. But they don’t come that cheap, probably don’t want to join a rebuilding team and aren’t conducive to losing either.
So by process of elimination, we have arrived not only back at the center position, but with Lopez actually being a great choice to add in here. He is a veteran player on a roster that, other than Terrence Ross, does not have a lot of that. Young talent is great, and the potential is exciting. But you need older heads to steer them through the rigors of the NBA.
Lopez has always been a high-character player, and that goes beyond the ongoing battles he has had with team mascots in the past. On top of that, he is also somebody who won’t be complaining if he doesn’t play. This is to the benefit of Bamba and Carter Jr., who can continue trying to establish themselves.
If one of those two is injured or even traded if a suitable deal comes up, then Lopez can slide into a starting role and do a serviceable job for the Orlando Magic. He doesn’t figure in the long-term future here, but to have him if needed, while also having somebody who will also be happy to just sit on the bench and teach from there, is invaluable.
The mascot feuds continue for Robin Lopez... (via @OrlandoMagic)
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 25, 2017
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Compare it to the one-year, $15 million deal for Jeff Green that the Magic pulled off a few years back. What a disaster that was. This time the front office has looked at a position on the roster that could do with another body but more importantly can provide guidance away from the court.
As an added bonus, Carter Jr. and Bamba could both personally learn a lot from a big man who has stuck in the league since 2008, and who is more of an old school center than many of the more modern bigs in the league. Bamba and Carter Jr. are certainly more modern, but to pick up valuable information about other areas of the game of the big man can only be a good thing.
In the end, this is a move that looks odd on the surface, but which makes more sense the deeper you dig. We probably won’t see a lot of Lopez during the season but in a lot of ways that is what the organization is looking for with this roster spot. A veteran leader on the bench who helps this young group to grow and become better. Another smart choice was made by the Orlando Magic brass.