Veteran Magic guard Michael Carter-Williams provided helpful on-court production and off-court leadership during the first season of his two-year, $6MM deal with the club, writes Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel.
After missing the first half of the year due to a foot injury, Carter-Williams stepped in as the starting point guard on February 12 with Markelle Fultz and Cole Anthony both injured for much of the season. He started in 25 of his 31 games for the club, averaging 8.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 4.2 APG.
Carter-Williams’ 2021/22 salary is guaranteed, though it remains to be seen what sort of role he’ll have with a team that has shifted into rebuilding mode.
There’s more out of Orlando:
- Veteran Magic wing James Ennis helped supply 3-and-D contributions when healthy during a difficult 2020/21 season in Orlando, per Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel. Ennis is a free agent, having signed a one-year, $3.3MM contract with Orlando in the offseason after the team traded for him while he was finishing up his prior contract with the Sixers in February 2020. Various injuries (most persistently, a calf ailment) limited Ennis to just 41 total games (37 starts) with the Magic, averaging 8.4 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.5 APG and 0.8 BPG. He boasted a solid shooting line of .473/.433/.805. Parry notes that the Magic currently do not have a small forward signed for the 2021/22 season, and may look to the 30-year-old Ennis to fulfill that position in the immediate future.
- Magic point guard Markelle Fultz was frustrated by yet another injury-abbreviated season, the final under his rookie-scale contract, reports Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel. Fultz, who underwent surgery for a torn ACL in January, signed a three-year, $50MM extension with Orlando in the 2020 offseason. He helped power the team to a 5-2 start to kick off the 2020/21 season before suffering his injury. A solid finisher and defender, Fultz has yet to develop his outside shooting. Parry notes that rookies Cole Anthony and R.J. Hampton could compete for the long-term starting point guard position in the years ahead, and cautions that an exact timeline for Fultz’s anticipated return next season remains unclear. A standard 12-month ACL recovery would push Fultz’s return to January 2022.
- The Magic’s newly-opened head coaching job should appeal to candidates eager to develop young players, writes Josh Cohen of Magic.com. The Magic have an intriguing core of under-24 youth, and will add to that tally in a hurry, with possibly two lottery selections and one early first-rounder (the No. 33 selection) in next month’s draft. “This job has tremendous growth potential, which is very attractive,” team president Jeff Weltman said. “It has organizational strength and ownership behind it. We are moving into a new practice facility next year. There are a lot of good things happening here. Most importantly, we have a lot of bright young talented players.”
4 step plan for Orlando to dominate the East for the next decade… Step1: draft (Jalen Green or Jonathan Kuminga) & Scottie Barnes with your 2 top10 picks… Step2: trade MCW, TRoss & Wendell Jr & a future lotto protected 1st to San Fran for Wiseman & Paschall… Step3: hire Anfernee Hardaway as head Coach… Step4: sign Duncan Robinson to a front loaded 4yr $90M offer sheet
Why trade Wendell when they just got him?
Because Wiseman is better basically. Wendell has potential to be a solid starter for yrs but Wiseman has potential to be the best 2way big in the league. Plus the connection with Penny. Plus the fact that it may be possible to buy low on Wiseman after an up&down rookie yr coming off an injury. Plus Wiseman has an extra yr of team control. Plus Wiseman is more of a scorer and Orlando needs scoring
Penny can’t even dominate the AAC.
His Tigers never finished above 3rd place.
He was in the AAC title game in his 2nd yr & they played AAC champion/Final 4 squad Houston extremely well all yr long. He definitely has more coaching experience & more experience winning as a coach than Steve Nash had when he was hired. Penny relates to young players as well or better than probably any current NBA head coach. He’s been a young player with vast potential and high expectations just like numerous current Magic players. He has experience being a superstar #1 option, an All-Star #2 option & a valuable role player. He would generate some much needed excitement in the Magic fan base. Many reasons to hire Penny
Dominate the east for the next 10 years with a roster of…. Cole Anthony Markelle Fultz RJ Hampton Gary Harris Duncan Robinson Green/Kuminga Scottie Barnes Jonothan Issac James Wismean Mo Bamba and Eric Paschall…
I’m sorry but that’s a laugh…
You’d have bits and pieces but a terrible coach, no experienced leader, no star player just a bunch of young potential with no direction or leader.
the fact that you typed all those names out & still don’t see how strong that team could be tells me alot about the way u see the game just being honest… just take the 1st 3 names u mentioned. All young guys with potential to be All-Star level pgs. Having Penny mentor those guys would be perfect fr. If they are lucky enough to draft Jalen Green & then trade for James Wiseman, I mean a blind man can see thats the beginnings of a dynasty right there just with them 2 alone. Jon Isaac & Scottie Barnes both have DPOY potential at forward. Gary Harris is definitely a solid vet that can help bring maturity and experience to the locker room even tho I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s traded at the deadline tbh. Signing a guy like Jeff Teague or even bringing back Dwight would be a relatively cheap & doable way to add a vet leader to the mix. Still not sure how you figure Penny is a terrible coach when he’s won at the AAU level, HS level & college level. He’s literally perfect for the role of leader that you say they’d be lacking… and yea please get familiar with Jalen Green and James Wiseman. That’s a couple of future legends fr
Dude relax draft picks don’t always pan out. Magic are young and have solid picks coming. Let’s wait to see who they are. A top 5 is a major talent. They have players coming back from serious injuries. So we should just see who they draft. Plus now they need a coach who can lead the rebuild here. I think ex Nets coach would be a wise move Atkinson proved himself with young Nets team. I’d definitely look at him. I like Carter, Fultz, Anthony, Issac, plus their picks. Magic are just beginning.
I figured you would have learned to listen to me by now smh. Obv all draft picks don’t become great nba players. Jalen Green isn’t all draft picks. Anybody that knows the game & has seen the boy play should know that he’s gonna be a BIG time nba player sooner than later.. lol obv we’re gonna see who they draft, that doesn’t mean we can’t talk about them now & the moves they could make that would make them a dominant franchise in the 20s… Orlando would be MUCH better off with a guy like Penny over somebody like Kenny Atkinson who failed to win any playoff games in 3,4yrs as a coach. The days of less qualified white guys getting chance after chance as head coaches & front office guys over more qualified minority candidates is finally coming to an end (in the nba at least).
Sankara, Qualified? Hardaway after a few years in college? Obv you see race first. Could of at least said Vanterpool.
Trading backups will not get Wiseman; they will want a high pick. The roster is depleted. ORL traded what they could at the deadline. May as well develop Bamba.
You’re too dreamy, but that’s what there is to think about while watching other teams in the playoffs.
Anthony is a gem but not on that team. Fultz is 50% injured, 50% 12-6-4 stat lines… RJ has potential but again his stat line will be about the same as Fultz most days. Harris would get traded, Robinson is probably the most overhype player right now. He’s 27, averaging 13-3.5-2 in 32 minutes. Green and Kuminga are future stars. Trade for Wiseman that’s alright but again he’s not ready his numbers would be like 12-7-1, Issac is always injured and again struggles to score more than 12. Then lastly Barnes who knows with him but he struggled to score 10 in college.
This team aside from Green/Kuminga and Anthony wouldn’t have anyone score over 14 point per game. Most players can’t hit open threes and so many dudes would want their hands on the ball. On the court you don’t have a veteran leader that’s respected enough to tell others what to do and how to do things correctly. You’d get found out so many times and the young guys would really struggle in confidence and patient. It would either a very long rebuild or a failure, sorry.
I like some of those players and I agree there is so much potential for most of those guys but you can’t just throw them all together and get results. You need vets and leaders and respected accomplished players that’ll produce. No good having Harris, Dwight and Teague just taking when none of them get more than 14 points per game. Of the group Dwight would get respect but that’s not enough.
You’re far too concerned with the stat lines of previous seasons. Its way more useful to look at guys skill set, talent level & fit with his teammates to predict future performance as opposed to just looking at their past pts/rebs/asts avgs. Look at Markelles skill level. He’s obviously a very good young versatile 2way player that will only get better. Its unfortunate he got hurt a few weeks after signing that big extension but he came back strong from his 1st injury i have no doubt he’ll come back strong this time too.. you saying Duncan Robinson is overrated, I have to wonder if u realize how important 3pt shooting is in the NBA rn. As far as Wiseman i mean you’re clearly sleeping on him. He’s got 20/10 potential, especially on a team like this that needs scoring & being coached by someone who trusts/knows/relates well to him. Lol every single team is full of guys who want the ball in their hands, Orlando would be no different. They’d def struggle with outside shooting but Duncan & GHarris are very good shooters & Cole/Jalen can be dangerous from trey as well. This obviously isn’t a team that would be a contender next season & not bc of a lack of shooting. They’d be the youngest team in the league, they just tanked last season & they’d have a 1st yr coach & multiple guys coming back from injuries. Theyre in rebuild mode rn, there’s no rush to be a contender next yr. Theyd be set up to dominate the East for the next decade tho & they’d have the ability to add another big time free agent in 2022 when GHarris contract expires
Your way to concerned with what this imaginary world of every player with potential with furfill that and they will be good. It’s really not the case.
Even forgetting everything the past they would really struggle with no leader on the floor, a lack of experience and no go clear definite roles.
Fultz would put up 13-5-3, Hampton 10-4-4, Cole 15-3-2, Harris like 12-2-2, Robinson like 15-2-2, Issac like 14-6-2, Wismean 14-7-1, Paschall 11-4-1
That’s hardly going to excite fans or win you many games. Yes in a few years under the right development Wiseman could be 20-10, Cole could be 23-5-3 and so on put it’s not just going to all click. You need leaders, veterans, and all this extra stuff. Can’t just put all this talent together and be like let’s go.
If you rebuilt like this so many young players would fail because they lack confidence after losing so much, so many players would really struggle getting constantly bullied by bigger grown men, it would be literally like playing with children.
ORL does not have even remotely close to enough cap space to offer Duncan Robinson anything…so that part of your premise is way off.
They would have to salary dump Ross or Harris + renounce all free agents to get close to offer sheet you proposed. Not to mention that ORL will be in year 1 of rebuild, so it’s very unlikely the FO is looking to add that type of player in free agency anyhow.
I also can’t see any reason why GSW would have interest in that hypothetical trade.
You’re also assuming that ORL gets 2 picks when there’s a 20% chance that the CHI pick doesn’t convey and a 48% chance that their own 1st round pick is in 5-7 range.
Penny Hardaway hire would be a lame Alex Martins type PR/nostalgia move done purely for novelty value. There is nothing that points to Penny being ready to be a head coach at the NBA level, maybe years down the road but definitely not now.
Cole is a fringe starter. Fultz will get injured each year. RJ is a player, Harris and Robinson are solid role players. Bamba is a bust. Issac needs to stay healthy and is a big ? that they have to reup and hope. They will not get Wiseman for what was proposed. Carter is WCS 2.0. Green/Kuminga tbd. Smells like a sub 500 team.
Just bc Markelle has had injuries doesn’t mean he’ll get hurt every year. Look at Steph Curry. He had injury issues early in his career yet he’s managed to have a pretty good career.. Cole was a fringe NBA starter as a rookie, 2yrs out of high school. He’s gonna keep getting better and better. He reminds me of another NYC pg, Steph Marbury fr. Its hard for me to respect the opinion of ppl who call guys busts fr but Bamba will show if he can be a player or not next season. I don’t see Isaac as a question mark at all, he’s literally 1 of the best defensive forwards in the world, if not the best. Guys come back from his injury all the time. Wendell plays nothing like WCS, he’s more like Tristan 2.0 if anything & G-State would improve their team GREATLY if they make that deal. Wendell is good enough to get a fairly efficient, disciplined 12/8 while providing good post/paint defense for the Ws for a long time. Plus TRoss & MCW are EXACTLY the type of vet role players they need off their bench. Extra future 1st rd pick don’t hurt either…. also Jalen Green & Jon Kuminga are sure things, especially Jalen but really both of em… ofc they’re gonna be a sub .500 team next yr smh the team is clearly rebuilding. They’ll probably be 1 of the worst defensive teams in the league even with Isaac back bc they’re so young but this team would be a juggernaut in waiting similar to the Hawks last season
I was hearing you out until you mentioned Markelle Fultz and Steph Curry in the same sentence.
Your moves aren’t bad. They’d be a step in the right direction. And if Cole Anthony, RJ Hampton and Wiseman end up being All NBA talents then sure Orlando will be dominant.
But the thing is—you can say that about pretty much any prospect heavy team in the league. If Frank Nicotine, Kevin Knox and Dennis Smith Jr fulfilled their potential your Hawks would be at home right now instead of beating Philly.
But in reality they’re all scrubs and MSG is hosting male figure skating championships instead of Knicks games.
To be fair, Fultz has only been healthy 1 of 3 seasons in the NBA and will miss most of his is upcoming 4th season as we won’t see him until around the All-Star break.
ACL recovery isn’t a gimme either as for every Zach LaVine recovery, there’s a Jabari Parker example of never recovering.
Coupled with his shooting woes, if ACL injury causes him to lose some of the athleticism that allows him to be who he is…then he won’t be a starter level player.
Cole is ok, very inefficient but wants desperately to win and has shown clutch gene…but he’ll always be battling uphill because of size.
JI is on his 3d major season ending injury to his rail thin lower body (on a 7 footer no less). He is awesome defender but his health is a MAJOR issue, not a fluke…despite Weltman’s PR spiel saying injuries were unrelated, nobody with any common sense and basic understanding of the body believes that.
You, and from what I can tell on one else here, mentioned Chuma Okeke!
Mark my words Chuma is going to be a stud star player! But I’m glad ppl are sleeping on him like they did at the beginning of Kawhi’s career!
I like Chuma & he’s yet another young guy on a rookie contract that can continue to develop and gain experience and chemistry with his fellow youngsters. He’ll never be anything like Kawhi tho. Tbh I think Chuma will be more like Jared Jeffries or maybe Marvin Williams than Kawhi
Yeah ok.
Wendell isn’t going anywhere especially since he was one of our bright spots down the stretch and Duncan Robinson isn’t good enough for a $90 million dollar contract
James Ennis & Dwayne Bacon were bright spots down the stretch for Orlando too but that don’t mean they can’t be moved. Instead of looking at Wendell’s production down the stretch of a lost season look at his actual skill set. He’s a good young player but he’ll never be a top10 big. Wiseman definitely could be that.
And for a team with such a need for 3pt shooting & so many guys still on cheap rookie contracts a guy like Duncan Robinson is worth as much as it takes to get him on your team
You are correct. A team would have to be ‘out of their mind’ to give Robinson a $90 million dollar contract. Robinson is a great shooter no doubt nowhere near worth that money.
any team that wants to sign Duncan will have to sign him for more than Miami is willing to pay. For Orlando to be successful, especially their young lead guards, they have to add some floor spacing. Duncan is 1 of the best at that in the league. He commands the respect of opposing defenses & Orlando needs that. Orlando has alot of $ available to spend bc so many of their guys are on cheap contracts. Filling a huge deficiency in your team with your available cap space is just obvious logic tbh. Unless Duncan gets hurt he should still be an elite shooter into his early 30s & elite 3pt shooters are obv very valuable in the NBA in 2021
You will get tired of Wendell after a while. You just haven’t realized that this is the best he will ever get. His middle name is “potential”. His last name should be “disappointment”. He did not learn from his mistakes, which is why he was available, his ceiling has been reached.
You are correct. It isn’t that he doesn’t learn from his mistakes though. Carter is undersized for a center and not agile and mobile enough to be a forward. Carter will struggle to match up with the big centers such as Jokic, Vucevic, Drummond, Jordan, Valanciunas, etc. It wasn’t the Bull’s fault when they drafted Carter in the 2018 draft. The Bulls drafted Carter at #7 in the 2018 draft. It wasn’t obvious who the best player available was at that very moment. Obviously if the Bulls could ‘do over’ that draft, SGA or Michael Porter Jr would be the pick at #7.
If I were to try rebuild the Magic you’d have to start by getting in some experienced leaders to help the young guys develop and get better. No good having all this potential with no leader, no vet and all that.
I’d make a hugely controversial trade.
Markelle Fultz, Gary Harris, Mo Bamba and the 33rd overall pick for John Wall, the 18th overall pick and 2 future firsts.
Walls deal is absolutely terrible but you stomach it for the next 2 seasons. He provides you a real good leader for your young team, he’s a real good role model for Cole Anthony to really learn a lot from. Plus once your team is a little more experienced they will free up his huge contract to spend in FA. Houston can then go all out with their top 5 pick and a group of Fultz Porter Jr Tate Wood Bamba and have trade pieces Gordon Harris etc
I’d add to Wall by then getting Dwight Howard and Lauri Markeneen in FA. Then in the draft add Jonathan Kuminga, Keon Johnson and Zaire Williams.
Leaving you with something like this
1. Wall. Anthony. MCW
2. Johnson. Hampton
3. Kuminga. Ross. Williams
4. Issac. Markeneen. Okeke
5. Carter Jr. Howard. Wagner
Wall runs point and is the leader of this young team. He gets good looks for all the other young prospects and can help them with his knowledge. They have some decent depth at every position and can line up in many ways.
With the second unit, Dwight returning home and he is the leader which should run well with Cole and TRoss.
With the right coach in a couple season Wall would leave, the young guys are starting to really find their role in the league and starting to do well. You spend up large using Walls money for either extensions or bringing in a FA.
Lol ZERO chance Orlando trades arguably their best player who chose to play his prime years in Orlando for the ridiculously expensive shell of John Wall who would very much hate playing in Orlando. Horrible deal for Orlando especially compared with what I had them getting from the Ws in a much more reasonable trade
Who are you talking about, their best player who chose to spend his prime years in Orlando. Bamba is a bust, Fultz is not quite a bust but may aswell be. Gary Harris didn’t chose a thing he was traded, Orlando only made the deal cause it wanted Hampton and a first, not Harris hahaha.
Secondly why would John Wall very much hate Orlando. I mean he’s still getting bank, compare it to Houston he goes from Gordon, Wood and young guys rebuilding to Cole Anthony (a talented young protege, who he can teach his craft), Kuminga/Green, Issac, another top 10 pick Johnson, Hampton (another young really talented point with similar game he can teach) and so on. Playing in the easier Eastern conference where he could potentially still make the playoffs, gets to go up against the team that traded him more often every year. Closer to where he was born and raised in North Carolina, Orlando is a better place to live especially in the summer.
It would also be moving in a similar path to former Wizard Gilbert Arenas.
Yes Wall is expensive but your not exactly giving up much and your also getting back a bunch of first round picks to rebuild with. Wall also only has 2 full season left on his contract meaning, next season would be I’m the leader and I’m head to teach you guys season and then second season would be stepping down a little and letting Cole and others handle more of the load and hopefully making the playoffs. Orlando would then get nearly 50m off the books to spend.
Your deal with Warriors ain’t happening, they value Wiseman and like his potential and won’t let him go, especially won’t be giving up a pick and Paschall aswell.
After that your team had more youth which is nice but this one is more competitive, has a real leader the players and fans can get behind and you can see the chance for success in less time.
You really expose yourself as a hater and an ugly and ignorant person when you call these guys busts fr especially a guy who just signed a huge multi year contract. Markelle is clearly the guy I was talking about that chose Orlando.. its obvious why Wall wouldn’t wanna play in Orlando dude they’re rebuilding. Vets making $40M don’t wanna play for rebuilding teams, and certainly don’t care about following the career path of some other guy, they wanna win. Basic obvious stuff. Ofc the Ws value Wiseman, they drafted him #2 overall. They value winning titles more tho & Wendell fits better with their current team. Even more than that tho getting TRoss & MCW would perfectly fill out their bench with experienced vets that bring the exact skills the Ws were lacking this from their bench unit this past season. Ross especially would be a perfect fit as the Ws 6th man sniper. And I had GState getting a future 1st from Orlando not giving 1 up
Not at all. Fultz was supposed to be a all star, he was taken first overall above the likes of Tatum and was expected to be a leader on the Sixers team. Unless he has a most improved player season he’s going down as a bust. It’s no about money and contracts it’s about fulfilling the potential people saw in you and being productive.
Fultz also hardly chose Orlando, the Sixers shipped him their cause no body else wanted him. He then chose to resign with them cause they overpaid him and probably next to no body was interested.
As for Wall you say he wouldn’t want to come cause they are rebuilding. Isn’t that exactly what Houston is doing. Orlando in comparison to Houston would be much better cause of the reason I’ve already explained. Houston finished with the worst record in the league last year, not to mention they will most likely take Cade Cunningham or Jalen Suggs in the draft, heavily reducing Walls minutes and probably benching him. Whereas in Orlando Wall would be in the easier eastern conference, serving as a leader to Cole and RJ. He would be a the leader on the floor, well respected and in all honesty probably have a chance of atleast making the play in tournament
As for the W’s trade I just don’t see it. Draymond likes Wiseman and spent a lot of time teaching him, Steven Kerr just recently said he doesn’t regret picking him and is looking forward to building with him more. Warriors will get Klay back, have another good couple draft picks and Lerr has also said they want to get some Andre Iguodala dudes from the bench that can defend, offer versatility and so on.
If they made that trade tho, I’d still trade Fultz, Harris and Bamba for Wall and picks tho. Wall could develop the guards and you’d have Wismean at centre who has in’s and potential and would be great moving forward. I just don’t see them making that deal
Also since when is John Wall a good leader??? lol id say Gary Harris is a better leader tbh they’d be way better off just keeping him, he’s just as productive, better defender, has an expiring contract, fills more of a need. I’d MUCH rather have my young pg learning from Penny Hardaway than John Wall
lol Kenny Atkinson did win a playoff game in 2019 and why would your even bring up playoff games? He coached a rebuilding team who had no first round picks and helped develop guys to really productive players and ended up leading them to the playoffs
Gary Harris is hardly a role player, he’s 26, never mad an all star, never made an all man team, never gone to the dunk or 3 point contest, never lead the league in anything. He’s only ever had 1 season scoring more than 15 points, and for the last 2 seasons he’s struggled to score 10. Gary Harris isn’t better than John wall at anything even after the injury.
Wall is well respected, 5 time all star, an all nba team, all defensive team, dunk contest winner, even last year in a bad year for a bad team almost averaged 21-7-3. He tried to talk James Harden into staying in Houston and lead that locker room which now looks really promising with Porter Jr and Tate. Bradley Beal has talked up Wall and how they have such a strong bond like brothers. He’s a career 19-9-3 guy, Cole Anthony, RJ Hampton, Jalen Green? these guys being the next leaders of this team would learn a lot, really respect him and look up to him like Beal did and look at him now also.
Gary Harris is a joke, John Wall would actually be a great move for the Magic and their young guys. Then you could employ a coach to actually coach and build a culture and win, not to be a personal trainer for your 3 point guards. Sam Cassell, Wes Unseld Jr or Jerry Stackhouse stand out as names I’d like
Lol if you love John Wall do much then why do u want him off your team so bad?
My team is Philly. But growing up I was a huge TMac and Dwight and Shaq fan. I’ve always had a soft spot for the Magic. Just lately they have sucked and lacked direction. Only recently, mainly cause of Cole Anthony have I paid them any attention.
I think you’re onto something. Orlando should look to take toxic contracts for draft compensation.
Not sure how much interest Fultz will attract before he shows his stuff post ACL though.
Rockets would probably won’t have that much interest considering they probably take Cunningham or Suggs in the draft but I mean salary cap wise it would be a huge win.
Wall has 2 years 90 mil left on his deal, and as an accomplished vocal player he probably wouldn’t like behind put on the back burner for Cunningham or Suggs. So to save the cap space and avoid problems in the locker room during the rebuild, flip him plus the 18th pick (who cares they have 4 firsts this year) plus two future first (with some protections) for Fultz who can be a decent back up with upside and Harris an expiring contract, you can flip or just use as a role player.
Rockets would have a good start to a rebuild with day Cunningham Porter Jr Tate and Wood taking 4 of 5 starting spots.
They could in turn flip say Gordon and Augustine for Horford and some of OKCs picks possibly.
That’s gives you a decent starting 5 plus Fultz Harris and Martin off the bench with picks and cap space to use.
Tank it out for another season, get another young star and then go for it
Fultz’s head is more worrisome than his knees.
Orlando’s Marty! Last place will be hard to handle and Sankara will have to find villians. But I would rather not hear him talking about “fit” when he barely even has names yet, much less games. I would suspect he does not get that idea yet.
Underdog teams get high picks, that is the bright side.