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Magic To Give Clark Qualifying Offer, Let Iwundu, Frazier Walk

November 19th, 2020 at 3:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Magic will extend a $1.82MM qualifying offer to forward Gary Clark, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets.

They will not extend a $2MM qualifying offer to swingman Wesley Iwundu and they’ll also decline their $1.66MM option on guard Melvin Frazier Jr. Both players will head into unrestricted free agency, while Clark will be restricted.

Orlando signed Clark after the Rockets waived him in early January. Clark, 25, appeared in 24 games for Orlando, averaging 3.6 PPG and 2.9 RPG in 14.8 MPG.

The decision on Iwundu, a second-round pick in 2017, is somewhat surprising. He started 21 of 52 games last season, averaging 5.8 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 18.3 MPG. It signals that Orlando felt it could get a rotation upgrade elsewhere.

Orlando’s decision on Frazier didn’t raise eyebrows. A 2018 second-round pick, Frazier never cracked the rotation, appearing in just 29 games over two seasons.

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Magic Trade No. 45 Pick To Bucks

November 18th, 2020 at 2:26pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Magic have traded their No. 45 pick in today’s draft to the Bucks in exchange for two future second-rounders, the team’s official PR account tweets.

One of the second-rounders headed to Orlando is a Pacers pick and will be conveyed in either 2022, 2023, or 2024. The other is the Bucks’ second-round pick in 2026. Should MVP forward Giannis Antetokounmpo opt to depart Milwaukee next summer, that pick could end up landing fairly high in the second round.

The Pacers owe their 2021 second-round pick to the Nets, but it has 45-60 protection in both ’21 and ’22, meaning it may not change hands until it becomes unprotected in 2023. The Magic will get a Pacers second-rounder one year after the Nets get theirs.

The Bucks appear to be interested in adding second-round picks this year because, due to a CBA quirk, those picks will only count for $898K against both the luxury tax and hard cap if they sign for the minimum. Undrafted rookie free agents, meanwhile, would count for $898K against the cap but about $1.62MM against the luxury tax.

These small savings are imperative for Milwaukee since the Bucks will lack much wiggle room after their Jrue Holiday and Bogdan Bogdanovic trades are finalized and will likely surpass the luxury tax line, approaching their hard cap.

The Magic also hold the No. 15 selection in today’s draft, while the Bucks also have the No. 60 pick. There are conflicting reports on whether or not Milwaukee will also receive the No. 42 pick from New Orleans in the Holiday deal, which is not yet official.

Luke Adams contributed to this report.

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Magic Entering Draft In Need Of Offensive Spark

November 18th, 2020 at 12:29pm CST by JD Shaw
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Trade Rumors: Celtics, Hayward, Kings, Magic, Fournier, More

November 18th, 2020 at 9:26am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics continue to search for potential pathways to get into the top three of tonight’s NBA draft, league sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link). An earlier report suggested the C’s haven’t had much luck gaining traction on a move into the mid-lottery using their current three first-round picks (Nos. 14, 26, and 30).

It’s unclear if a potential deal involving Gordon Hayward would provide a path for the Celtics to move up in the draft. Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link) hears that the team is “mostly in a holding pattern” with Hayward for the time being.

Following up on a Tuesday report which indicated that the Hawks are eyeing Hayward, Jared Weiss of The Athletic cites a person familiar with the forward’s thinking who says Hayward wants to be a core part of a winning team and may not be interested in a move to Atlanta. Weiss wonders if the report linking Hayward to the Hawks may have been leaked to increase the 30-year-old’s leverage as he weighs his player option decision.

Meanwhile, in his latest Hoop Collective podcast, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst theorized that the Cavaliers, who hold the No. 5 pick, could be a landing spot for Hayward. Cleveland has interest in Hayward, according to Windhorst, who speculated that the Cavs and Celtics could be open to a deal that involves Andre Drummond and a draft-pick swap. Of course, if Hayward is prioritizing playing for a contender, he may try to angle to avoid a move to Cleveland.

Here are a few more trade-related notes and rumors, with the draft around the corner:

  • Also in Windhorst’s latest Hoop Collective podcast, he and colleague Zach Lowe identified the Kings and Magic as two teams that may be looking to get a little younger this offseason rather than being content with competing again for the No. 8 seed. Nemanja Bjelica was identified by Lowe as a possible trade candidate to watch in Sacramento, while Windhorst added that Orlando would likely be open to moving Evan Fournier.
  • Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (Twitter link) wouldn’t be surprised if the Mavericks renew their interest in shooting guard Danny Green, who is being sent to Oklahoma City in a deal for Dennis Schröder. Dallas attempted to sign Green in free agency a year ago, and the rebuilding Thunder are unlikely to be too attached to him.
  • Although the Nuggets had interest in acquiring Jrue Holiday, they were surprised by what it cost Milwaukee to land him and didn’t feel pressure to make as significant an offer as the Bucks did, as Mike Singer of The Denver Post explains.
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Southeast Notes: Gordon, Magic, Hawks, Heat

November 17th, 2020 at 2:29pm CST by Luke Adams

Before the Trail Blazers reached an agreement with Houston to acquire Robert Covington in exchange for Trevor Ariza, this year’s No. 16 pick, and a protected 2021 first-round selection, Portland used similar assets to attempt to acquire Aaron Gordon from the Magic, according to Mitch Lawrence of SiriusXM NBA Radio (Twitter link), who says Orlando didn’t bite.

Gordon is believed to be available, with one recent report suggesting the Magic are attempting to move up in the draft by attaching the forward to the No. 15 pick. However, it makes sense that Orlando would be lukewarm on an offer made up of an expiring contract and two mid-to-late first-rounders. If the Magic do move Gordon, they’d likely want to get an impact player in return, or at least create a path to land one  (ie. securing a high lottery pick).

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

  • Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman confirmed on Monday that his team has explored the possibility of trading up or trading down in the draft, but said the “greatest likelihood” is that the club remains at No. 15, per Roy Parry of The Orlando Sentinel.
  • Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk said something similar in his Monday conference call, suggesting that staying put at No. 6 is most likely for his club, followed by trading down. As Chris Kirschner of The Athletic relays, Schlenk also spoke about Atlanta shifting from “asset accumulation to hopefully talent accumulation” using its cap room this offseason, suggesting the team is no longer prioritizing accommodating salary dumps with its cap space.
  • Texas Tech guard Jahmi’us Ramsey conducted a personalized workout on Zoom with the Heat, he told reporters today (Twitter link via Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic). Ramsey added that he also did a Zoom workout that about 22 teams watched.
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James Ennis Declining Option, Will Become Free Agent

November 17th, 2020 at 10:22am CST by Luke Adams

Magic swingman James Ennis will turn down his player option for the 2020/21 season and become a free agent, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Ennis’ option was worth the veteran’s minimum ($2.13MM), so there’s little risk in declining it in search of a more favorable deal. If he ends up on another minimum deal, it’d be worth about $2.03MM, so his pay cut would be minimal.

Ennis, who re-signed with the 76ers as a free agent last summer, averaged 5.8 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 49 games (15.8 MPG) as part of Philadelphia’s rotation. However, when they went out and acquired Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III at the trade deadline for depth purposes, the Sixers decided to move Ennis, sending him to Orlando for a second-round pick.

With the Magic, Ennis recorded 8.5 PPG and 4.8 RPG on .451/.286/.838 shooting in 20 games (24.5 MPG). He also started all five of Orlando’s playoff games.

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Trade Rumors: Westbrook, Hornets, Holiday, Gordon

November 16th, 2020 at 2:10pm CST by Luke Adams

The first major domino of the NBA offseason has fallen, as the Thunder and Suns are set to finalize a deal that will send All-Star guard Chris Paul to Phoenix.

Kelly Oubre is one of the key pieces headed to Oklahoma City in that swap, and according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7FM (Twitter link), the Suns felt as if Oubre was expendable not only due to the emergence of Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson, but because they didn’t think they’d end up re-signing Oubre in free agency in 2021.

Meanwhile, while Paul is on board with being dealt to the Suns, Marc Berman of The New York Post hears that CP3’s top preference would have been a move to the Clippers. The veteran point guard had “mixed feelings” about a possible deal to the Knicks, Berman adds.

As we wait for more trade agreements to be reached, here are a few of the latest rumors from around the NBA:

  • The Hornets appear to be the most likely landing spot for Russell Westbrook, according to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, who writes that team owner Michael Jordan wants to acquire the former MVP. However, sources tell O’Connor that Charlotte won’t put the No. 3 overall pick on the table in an offer to the Rockets.
  • The Mavericks aren’t involved in the Jrue Holiday sweepstakes for now, according to Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News, who tweets that the Pelicans prefer to trade Holiday to an Eastern Conference team. Mike Singer of The Denver Post notes (via Twitter) that New Orleans’ apparent desire to send Holiday to the East might be posturing to try to drive up the price for a team like the Nuggets.
  • Asked today about trade rumors involving Aaron Gordon, Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman confirmed there have been “a lot of calls” on the forward (Twitter link via Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel). However, he added that there’s an “amazing amount of misinformation that circulates and is unfounded.” A report last week suggested Orlando was trying to move up in the draft from No. 15 by attaching Gordon to the pick.
  • In case you missed it, James Harden is rumored to be seeking a trade out of Houston.
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Magic Sign 2019 First-Rounder Chuma Okeke

November 16th, 2020 at 1:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have officially signed 2019 first-round pick Chuma Okeke to his rookie contract, the team announced today in a press release.

Orlando drafted Okeke with the 16th overall selection last year, having reached an agreement to essentially redshirt him for his first professional season as he recovered from the ACL injury he suffered during the NCAA tournament while playing for Auburn.

The 22-year-old forward signed a G League contract and spent the year rehabbing with the Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s NBAGL affiliate.

Because the NBA’s salary cap didn’t move at all for the 2020/21 season, Okeke will sign the same rookie contract this year that he would’ve received a year ago. Assuming he gets 120% of the standard rookie scale amount, his deal will be worth about $3.12MM in year one and $15.1MM over four years.

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Evan Fournier To Exercise Player Option

November 15th, 2020 at 7:34pm CST by JD Shaw

Magic guard Evan Fournier is exercising his $17MM player option for the 2020/21 season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Fournier, 28, will return to Orlando and bypass free agency. He’s spent the past six seasons with the Magic, averaging 18.5 points and 3.2 assists per game last year.

The Magic are still waiting for James Ennis‘ official decision on his player option, worth $2.1MM, and also have D.J. Augustin and Michael Carter-Williams set to become unrestricted free agents. In addition, the team could extend qualifying offers to Wesley Iwundu ($2MM) and Gary Clark ($1.8MM) in order to make them restricted free agents.

Orlando finished with the eighth-best record in the Eastern Conference last season at 33-40. The club sports a talented young core consisting of Aaron Gordon, Mohamed Bamba, Jonathan Isaac, Markelle Fultz and others.

Fournier’s option decision pushes the Magic’s total guaranteed salaries up to approximately $113MM, all but guaranteeing that the club will operate over the cap in 2020/21.

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