The Magic have exercised a series of rookie scale team options, guaranteeing the 2024/25 salaries for forward Franz Wagner, guard Jalen Suggs and forward Paolo Banchero, according to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel.
All three players already had guaranteed salaries for the upcoming season (2023/24). Now they’re locked for in at least one more season beyond that.
Wagner’s and Suggs’ fourth-year options for 2024/25 are worth $7,007,092 and $9,188,385, respectively. Both players will now be eligible for rookie scale extensions next offseason. As for Banchero, he’ll earn $12,160,800 in ’24/25 now that his third-year option has been picked up. Orlando will have to exercise his fourth-year option for ’25/26 next fall.
Wagner averaged 18.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 32.6 minutes per night across 80 appearances in his second NBA season. The 22-year-old forward, who posted a strong shooting line of .485/.361/.842 in 2022/23, helped lead Germany to a World Cup gold medal this summer.
Suggs, the fifth overall pick in 2021, has had a couple up-and-down seasons since going pro, shooting just .387/.271/.752 with averages of 10.8 PPG, 3.6 APG, and 3.3 RPG in 101 total NBA games (25.3 MPG). However, Orlando remains confident enough in his growth to commit to him beyond the coming season.
As for Banchero, the rising star is coming off a Rookie of the Year campaign in which he averaged a team-high 20.0 PPG to go along with 6.9 RPG and 3.7 APG on .427/.298/.738 shooting in 72 games (33.8 MPG). He’ll be looking to improve his shooting efficiency in year two and has spoken about wanting to become an All-Star.
The full list of rookie scale team option decisions, which are due October 31, can be found right here.
Suggs picked it up from the end of January through the end of the season, by a lot. He averaged 11 ppg, with 38% from 3 on four attempts per game (24.3 mpg) and his typical strong defense. He looked fairly more confident too, not hesitant to take his shots and attack defenses. Not surprised that the Magic are letting him keep developing. If he can improve his conditioning and stay healthy, he’ll be a very solid guard, even if he never reaches his maximum potential.
Suggs is a sixth man at best
They already have Cole Anthony, and Suggs is a very gifted defender. He could be Gary Harris 2.0 easily. Already looks like the post 2018 version of him with better defense. Have a little more faith in a guy who hasn’t gotten a chance to play healthy.
Anthony has surprising rebounding and block rates for a PG but seems stuck in a backup role. What is the problem with him? Suggs seems like a offensive plug off the bench to me, I don’t like him defensively or as a starter. G Harris was a really good defender.
Cole Anthony’s block and rebound rates mask the fact that he’s a very subpar defender. He can contest 3s, but otherwise he’s below average everywhere else, and doesn’t get his hands up for contests as much as you’d like given his mpg (Suggs contests half again as many shots even in fewer minutes). He’s also not great off-ball, and is definitively more of a scorer than the playmaker the Magic need.
Suggs, though, is a very good defender. Especially as a 2-guard. He has twice the steals Cole A has, and while his block numbers aren’t crazy impressive or anything, his on-ball defense and contest numbers are shockingly good. Opponents really struggled to get by him when he was healthy from Feb. onwards, and their shooting numbers reflected that (nearly 4 percentage points worse than the average, which is a huge gap for a 6’4″ guard; the average even for a good defender is like 2-3 points, with areas where they are below-average). Even when he wasn’t healthy, he was still better than CA from everywhere. And he’s also FAR better as an off-ball spacer cutter than Anthony is. I don’t view him as a PG, but as a SG he has exceptional 3nD potential. He’s not the 3pt stopper Harris was in his prime, but he’s not far off, and is better at contesting other shots.
Also, just watch him on the court. Suggs has the wingspan and footwork to stay in front of basically anyone. He doesn’t gamble, because he doesn’t need to. He just makes the right plays on defense.
I like Cole Anthony for what he is, but he’s a sixth man, or a starting 2 on a team with a tall, defensive point. Potentially a Lou Williams-tier sixth man in the future, but still a sixth man. He plays way better against opposing benches than starters, and it inflates his numbers a bit. His explosiveness and presence on the court (he really likes to rally his teammates) are plenty valuable. But I don’t think they’re worth the drops in defense or playmaking you’d get by starting him.
What about Suggs at the point? I appreciate you telling me about Anthony. They want black as their PG. Howard would be a good option at the SG spot. I would make a trade for young talent if I was the magic. I don’t like Carter Jr (6’10) at center. I love to see J Williams in OKC along with Wiseman on the team.
Happy to discuss this stuff. Let me break this down a bit.
Suggs at the Point is fine, but I’d favor him much more off-ball. He’d certainly provide Point-of-Attack defense, but his playmaking doesn’t seem like primary ballhandler material, he’s about equal to Cole Anthony in terms of running the offense. He could be a very good secondary or tertiary option alongside a good floor general like Black or Markelle Fultz, but I’d hesitate to let him run the offense full-time. I’d also want him to improve his conditioning a lot. Furthermore, his 3pt percentages in off-ball scenarios are around 40% when healthy, but much lower as on pull-ups. I view him as a guy who can run around and attack off screens or catches and in favorable matchups while locking down perimeter threats on the other end and providing elite help defense from the 2-guard spot (not normally a strength of the position). A good fit for a team with ball-dominant wings like Paolo and Franz Wagner.
Carter Jr., as long as he stays healthy, is a good Center, especially as they’re still trying to fully figure out their identity and improve their shooting around Paolo. And despite his height, he’s very strong. He’s roughly the same size and height as Anthony Davis and actually outmasses Clint Capela at the same height. It gives him pretty strong ability to grab contested rebounds. Plus he has a 7’3″ wingspan. Needs to work on his defense, but he’s a solid fit, especially since the Magic can play Mo Wagner for extra length if need be.
I do expect Black to take over at Point eventually, but not this season. He’s still too raw as a shooter and needs to get used to the pace of the NBA, and he previously played in a college system that was more “playmaking by plurality” than being the point guard.
Jett Howard, I’m less sure on. At the moment, he looks more like a matchup nightmare type player, rather than having a set position. Height of a forward, but his wingspan is almost identical to his height and he doesn’t have the explosive athleticism you’d want out of a 2, and he’s not much of a driver. Shooter, absolutely, but he tends to heavily favor going right and doesn’t have much in the way of handles. He also tends to get targeted on defense a *lot*. There’s a reason a lot of people viewed him as a reach in the draft; he went upwards of ten spots higher than expected. I do think he’ll be a solid player, but he’s a project at this point.
I assume that’s Jaylin Williams, the big man, as the Thunder aren’t trading Jalen Williams the guard-forward for all the draft picks in the NBA. He’s cool. I’d take Carter over Wiseman at this point because his shooting and strength on screens are both big pluses. Maybe if Wiseman shows more of that #2 pick potential. I’d want Paolo to be at least a league-average shooter next to him, though.
Carter Jr is 6’10 and doesn’t protect the rim. I would think he would excel at PF. I also think Suggs should be playing off ball as a super sub, sixth man if the year material. I would offer a crazy trade but I understand if not. Magic trade the Wagner Bros, Carter Jr, Anthony for Jalen Williams, Bertans, K Johnson, Victor O, and Carson Wallace. Then trade Victor O for K Porter with with picks. Trade C Houston and those picks for Wiseman and finally trade Fulks somewhere he can play for a PG to eventually play behind Wallace. Magic waive Kevin Porter and Bertans. PG. Wallace SG. Black and Howard SF. J Williams PF. Paolo C. Wiseman. Sixth man of the year in Suggs. I would rather have that. Just a trade idea
Trading Franz Wagner is never happening either. He’s one of the best young players in the NBA on both ends. I’d rather have him than Paolo right now, tbh. Paolo’s defensive liabilities that were kind of hidden during the NBA season got *badly* exposed in the World Cup (he’s not terrible, but he needs work). Williams is an excellent young player, and he and Wagner have very similar skillsets, but Wagner is *by far* the superior defender. It’s not even close. The Magic would have to lose their minds to consider that move at present.
(And frankly, so would the Thunder. Williams is a perfect fit for them between Shai and Giddey. That trio is going to be scary.)
The Magic are too far along in their rebuild to think of going backwards trading pieces for upside plays, also. Wiseman has his positives, but right now he’s both limited and badly inexperienced. Even with the Pistons, he was comically overmatched on D, even against bench players. He’s just raw and low-IQ. In several years, maybe that’s a move the Magic could make, but not now.
Also, Carter could never hack it as a PF, he’s too slow. And honestly, he’s better at rim protection than you might think. The Magic were a middle-of-the-pack defense despite Paolo being just okay, largely because of Carter’s ability to force opponents to take bad shots. He and Suggs were the best defensive starters on that team, followed shortly by the Wagner bros. Of guys who actually played minutes, only Bol and Bamba were better on D, and their offense was awful.
Suggs doesn’t have the skillset of a 6th man. He’s not a sparkplug, doesn’t create his own shots as effectively as you’d like either. But his defense and off-ball movement/efficiency both make him an ideal 3&D player currently, and he still has room to grow. If he becomes the multi-talented force that Derrick White has become, maybe he can hack it. But right now? No shot.
Sorry for not replying, I must have missed the notif for that one.
I just like Jalen Williams more than Wagner. I think Orlando should find young talent to build around Paolo
Bro
Magic FO needs to extend Cole Anthony as well don’t let him walk away for nothing, perhaps Cole won’t be an all star player any time soon but his offensive skills are there and in this era an explosive scorer like Anthony is always needed.