Entering a second straight NBA winter with more teams looking to upgrade their rosters rather than selling off valuable veterans, no rival front office may be monitoring the sputtering Chicago Bulls’ decision-making closer than that of the Orlando Magic.
It was this time two years ago league executives were circling Orlando as the trade deadline approached, and the Magic delivered: dispensing Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier across the postseason map.
The ramifications of that Vucevic deal lie at the center of Chicago’s current predicament. Forget the fact talent evaluators are consistently pegging Wendell Carter Jr., the centerpiece of the Bulls’ package that landed Vucevic, as a more impactful player at present than the veteran center. The first of two picks Chicago sent to Orlando already netted dynamic wing creator Franz Wagner in the 2021 NBA draft. The second outgoing Bulls pick to the Magic is this year’s top-five projected selection that’s protected only Nos. 1-4 — which could bring Orlando a second premium lottery selection in a highly anticipated draft class.
A six-game winning streak that ended Monday, Paolo Banchero’s stellar rookie season, plus Orlando’s unique blend of size and young talent has onlookers rather bullish about the near future of these Magic. They are not exactly banging down the door of the play-in tournament, but Orlando, at 11-21, has exhibited the positive step toward competitiveness that Magic staffers were hoping to witness this season.
“They have two of the premier positions in the league — playmaking forwards — on rookie-scale contracts, intriguing young talent around them on solid contracts, no bad money moving forward, and some veterans who could get them back even more draft capital should they choose to trade them,” one Eastern Conference team strategist told Yahoo Sports.
There are certainly pieces for Orlando to move ahead of this season’s deadline, but the Magic won’t be gaining nearly the return they saw two years before.
Terrence Ross has long garnered interest from the Los Angeles Lakers, sources said. New York was in pursuit of Ross in previous years, as well. Yet, while Orlando has rebuffed offers below a first-round pick for the veteran swingman in recent seasons, sources said, it’s difficult to foresee a playoff contender sacrificing…