- The Magic are eager to see what Chuma Okeke can do this season, but the team is being careful not to put any unnecessary pressure on the 22-year-old, Roy Parry of The Orlando Sentinel writes. Okeke was drafted with the No. 16 pick in 2019 but sat out the entire 2019/20 season to rehab a torn ACL.
- Magic center Khem Birch is in the process of developing a corner three-point shot, Josh Cohen of NBA.com writes. “I’ve been working on my game so I can play with Vooch [Nikola Vucevic] this season,” Birch said. “Working on the corner threes, so when he gets the ball in the post he can kick out, and also being more aggressive. When I’m on the court, a lot of teams tend to think I’m not a threat. I feel like playing with Vooch, I have to be more of a threat this season and that’s what I’ve been working on this offseason.”
As the beginning of the 2020/21 NBA season approaches, the Magic and Spurs have emerged as the latest teams with plans to host fans inside their arenas.
Orlando and San Antonio join the Jazz as teams to have announced they will allow spectators during the 2020/21 season. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic – and no longer playing in a campus setting – the league has stressed safety and health precautions.
The Spurs announced that the organization plans to welcome fans starting on January 1, 2021, for a matchup against the Lakers. Seating at the games will be “limited capacity, pending the status of public health data and guidelines.”
“We’ve been planning for this moment for months and are confident in the health and safety protocols we have in place,” said Spurs Sports & Entertainment CEO R.C. Buford. “Waiting until Jan. 1 will allow us to run through real in-game scenarios to ensure that we are doing everything possible to responsibly celebrate the start of a new season with our Spurs Family.”
As for the Magic, their press release states that plans are being made to host fans in a “socially distanced, limited capacity at the Amway Center.” First priority will be given to season ticket holders based on tenure and then fans who made a season ticket deposit. The team will also release tickets to the general public on a game-by-game basis.
“As we have said, the health and safety of everyone connected to our game will be top priority,” said Magic CEO Alex Martins. “Our goal is to make everyone feel comfortable that extensive safety precautions have been taken for the return to Amway Center. We continue to work through protocols as outlined by the NBA, CDC and local health officials and will use the preseason as a trial to assess and evaluate safety measures.”
The 2020/21 NBA season is scheduled to tip off on December 22.
The Magic announced earlier this week that Mohamed Bamba hasn’t been cleared for contact drills, with head coach Steve Clifford suggesting that the big man was still “a ways away” from being 100%. However, in a conversation with Josh Robbins of The Athletic, Bamba said he’s feeling healthy after a bout with COVID-19 earlier in the year.
“I haven’t felt any symptoms since the summer — in fact, June,” Bamba said. “But we all know that it takes a toll on conditioning, and I just want everybody to know that I’m working my ass off to get back in peak shape. I think I’m getting pretty close. Literally every day is valuable towards this. But definitely, I’ve been working.”
Bamba went on to say that he can’t predict exactly when he’ll be back on the court, since the Magic “don’t necessarily do timelines.” However, he added that he’s working to return as soon as possible and appreciates that the organization is being cautious with his health.
Here’s more on the Magic:
- Several teams – as many as 10, and maybe even more than that – called the Magic during the offseason to show interest in trading for Aaron Gordon, sources tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe. While we don’t know the full list of potential suitors for Gordon, Lowe confirms that the Timberwolves were among the teams to inquire, as was previously reported. Orlando ultimately decided to hang onto the veteran forward, whom Lowe still believes in as a potential breakout candidate.
- Michael Carter-Williams, who played for six teams in his first six NBA seasons, drew interest from other clubs this offseason, but wanted to return to the Magic since he feels like he’s found a home in Orlando, writes Roy Parry of The Orlando Sentinel. “It is great to have some stability for myself, not only for myself but my family as well,” Carter-Williams said. “We can start to build a little routine and get comfortable.”
- Dwayne Bacon called it “a blessing” to join the Magic and is looking forward to being reunited with Steve Clifford, Steve Hetzel, and Bruce Kreutzer, who coached him during his rookie season in Charlotte. “I know as long as I’m here they’re going to push me, and they’re going to do and tell me whatever it takes to get to where I want to be and to where they want me to be,” Bacon said, per Dan Savage of OrlandoMagic.com.
Former Magic two-way player Vic Law will play in Australia during the 2020/21 season. The Brisbane Bullets have put out a press release announcing that they’ve signed the 6’7″ forward.
Law, who will turn 25 later this month, went undrafted out of Northwestern in 2019, then signed a training camp contract with the Magic a few weeks later. Although he was waived before the regular season began, he returned to Orlando on a two-way deal in January and finished the season with the team.
Law only played 62 total minutes in eight NBA games as a rookie in 2019/20, but had a big year for the Lakeland Magic in the G League. He averaged 19.7 PPG, 8.1 RPG, and 2.7 APG on .497/.403/.894 shooting in 33 games (34.9 MPG), earning a spot on the All-NBAGL Third Team.
The Magic had already signed Jordan Bone and undrafted rookie Karim Mane to fill their two-way contract slots for 2020/21, so there was no room to bring back Law on a second two-way deal.
Magic forward Al-Farouq Aminu has undergone a minor arthroscopic procedure to address the continued swelling in his troublesome right knee, the team announced today in a press release.
According to the Magic, Aminu’s return to the court will depend on how he responds to treatment and rehabilitation. However, the club says the procedure went as planned and will put the veteran on track to complete this final phase of his rehab.
Magic head coach Steve Clifford said earlier this week that Aminu hasn’t been cleared for contact and is still “a ways away” from returning — today’s update provides some additional context. The 30-year-old has been sidelined for virtually the entire calendar year, having undergone surgery on his right knee back in January to repair a torn meniscus.
Aminu was one of the first free agents to come off the board during the summer of 2019, agreeing to a three-year, $29MM deal with Orlando. He was coming off a solid season in Portland in which he averaged 9.4 PPG and 7.5 RPG on .433/.343/.867 shooting while playing strong defense. However, he was limited to just 18 games in his first season with the Magic and struggled in a part-time role before being sidelined by his knee injury. His shooting line dipping to an abysmal .291/.250/.655 in those 18 games.
The Magic are also currently without Jonathan Isaac, who will miss the entire season due to a torn ACL, and Mohamed Bamba, who is believed to still be dealing with the aftereffects of his bout with the coronavirus.
Magic head coach Steve Clifford told reporters today that Jonathan Isaac, Al-Farouq Aminu, and Mohamed Bamba haven’t been cleared for contact work when training camp begins, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Isaac is recovering from a torn ACL and is expected to miss the entire 2020/21 season, so his absence is unsurprising. Aminu and Bamba were unavailable for the Magic at the end of last season due to knee surgery recovery and coronavirus complications, respectively. It’s not clear if those same issues are keeping them sidelined this fall, but Clifford said today that both players are still “a ways away” from being 100%, per Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links).
- Josh Robbins of The Athletic examines whether the Magic tend to overvalue their own players. Orlando finished with the eight-best record in the Eastern Conference at 33-40 last season, losing point guard D.J. Augustin to Milwaukee in free agency. The team retained Evan Fournier after he exercised his $17.15MM player option, however, with the 28-year-old averaging a career-high 18.5 points per game last season.
Heat president Pat Riley said signing Bam Adebayo to an extension was an easy decision, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. At age 23, Adebayo has already become one of the league’s best big men, averaging 15.9 points, 10.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists last season while making his first All-Star appearance.
“One of the most important things a franchise can do is to make sure that your best, youngest, cornerstone players sign on the dotted line,” Riley said. “Getting Bam his extension was a no-brainer for us because we know he will be around for years to come. That’s great for the Heat, great for the fans and great for Bam.”
Adebayo will only receive a full super-max deal, paying him 30% of the salary cap, if he earns MVP honors, tweets John Hollinger of The Athletic. That figure is 28.5% if he is a first-team All-NBA selection and 27.5% if he wins Defensive Player of the Year. If none of those things happen, Adebayo will be paid 25% of the cap. Those figures are confirmed by Chiang, who adds that Adebayo’s new contract doesn’t contain any player or team options (Twitter link).
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Re-signing Davis Bertans gives the Wizards one sure thing on a roster filled with uncertainty, states Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. Bertans developed into one of the NBA’s most dangerous three-point shooters during his first season in Washington and was rewarded with a five-year, $80MM contract. “There’d been talk from (general manager Tommy Sheppard) and the Wizards that they wanted me to stay,” Bertans said. “But until it comes to free agency, you actually get the call that the team wants you, you can’t be sure. I was happy that it wasn’t just some talk from Tommy and the whole team, that they really, really wanted me to come back.”
- Rajon Rondo‘s new contract with the Hawks includes a $750K incentive if he plays at least 33 games and the team reaches the playoffs, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.
- Karim Mane, who signed a two-way contract with the Magic on Friday, has similarities in his game to Victor Oladipo and Jrue Holiday, observes Josh Cohen of NBA.com. Mane is relentless on defense, excelling in traps, and is hard for defenders to stay in front of when he drives to the basket.
The Magic have officially announced five free agent signings ahead of the start of training camps next week. Here are the five newly-added players to Orlando’s roster:
- Devin Cannady, G
- Robert Franks, F
- Jordan Bone, G — two-way contract (previously reported)
- Karim Mane, G — two-way contract (previously reported)
- Jon Teske, C (previously reported)
Bone and Mane project to fill the Magic’s two-way contract slots to start the season — you can read more about them and Teske in our previous stories on their contract agreements.
Cannady, who went undrafted out of Princeton in 2019, signed with Brooklyn last October, but was only on the roster for three days, allowing the Nets to claim his G League rights. He spent his rookie season with the Long Islands Nets, averaging 14.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 2.6 APG in 39 NBAGL games (30.9 MPG).
As for Franks, he also went undrafted last year – out of Washington State – and spent the season in the G League. The 23-year-old power forward started the 2019/20 campaign on a two-way contract with the Hornets, but never got into an NBA game and was waived in January. He put up 17.3 PPG and 6.5 RPG in 36 G League contests for the Greensboro Swarm and Stockton Kings.
Cannady, Franks, and Teske likely won’t make Orlando’s regular season roster, but appear poised to spending training camp with the club.
Timberwolves restricted free agent forward Juan Hernangomez initially sought an offer in excess of $10MM per year, sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Unwilling to meet that price right off the bat, the Wolves “essentially told” Hernangomez to prove he could get an offer from another club while they went looking for possible alternatives at power forward, writes Krawczynski.
Minnesota ended up reaching out to a number forwards in free agency, including Derrick Jones (as previously outlined), Paul Millsap, Jae Crowder, and JaMychal Green, and inquired on possible trades involving Magic forward Aaron Gordon, Rockets forward P.J. Tucker, and Cavaliers big man Larry Nance Jr., sources tell Krawczynski.
The Timberwolves didn’t have any luck with any of those potential targets, but held firm on their offer to Hernangomez, who mulled the possibility of accepting the one-year qualifying offer worth $4.64MM, per Krawczynski. Ultimately, the two sides came to an agreement on a three-year, $21MM deal that has a third-year team option.
Here’s more out of Minnesota:
- The Timberwolves chose Anthony Edwards with the No. 1 pick last week because they believe he has the clearest path of any of this year’s draft-eligible prospects to becoming a multi-time All-Star, says Krawczysnki.
- Sources tell The Athletic that the team’s acquisition of Ricky Rubio was partly motivated by seeing what the veteran point guard did for Donovan Mitchell and Devin Booker at his previous stops and a belief that he’ll aid Edwards’ development.
- The Knicks told Malik Beasley he’d be their Plan B in free agency if they couldn’t land Gordon Hayward, according to Krawczynski. Recognizing that New York could be a threat to put forth a troublesome offer sheet, the Wolves went in with an aggressive pitch on the opening night of free agency and secured a commitment from Beasley on the spot. Sources tell The Athletic that Beasley has appreciated the support he’s received from the franchise since running into off-court legal problems.
- The Timberwolves officially announced Beasley’s new deal today. Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) has the year-by-year financial breakdown of that contract, which guarantees the swingman $43MM+ over three years.