Above is a Snapchat post from Magic guard Cole Anthony (middle) made by Markelle Fultz (right).
This season I have watched nearly every Orlando Magic basketball game. Now, if you know me, you’re probably thinking – “Whitman, are you okay?”
Other thoughts might include – “You really want me to spend an even slightly significant portion of my day reading about the Orlando Magic? Do I have to? Aren’t you like a Clippers fan? Why do you choose such disappointing teams?” Great questions without reasonable answers.
I was just a football fan until the Magic were the first team that hooked me into basketball. I liked dunking on people with Dwight Howard on NBA 2K11, and I was a fan of the blue pinstripes. Hedo Turkoglu, JJ Redick, Gilbert Arenas post-pulling a gun out in the locker room…They had some fun teams.
They’ve been bad for a long time since. I’ve kept an eye on their moves over the years, but they have been pretty hard to watch for the last decade. I drifted over to Clippers fandom when I moved to SoCal and never looked back.
Until NOW.
Spare me the bandwagon lecture. Watching Orlando in most of the 2010’s would have been torture, and I’d have had to buy LeaguePass for it. Now I can afford LeaguePass and it’s actually fun to watch them. I’m back baby.
Through a lot of tanking, and a couple of wise trades, Orlando is one of the youngest, talented, and most unique teams in the NBA. They don’t just have the potential to be good (sound the hyperbolic alarms) – with their size and skill they could become unlike anything the NBA has seen before.
Now don’t get me wrong, they’re still bad. They won’t be competing for a championship this year, in fact I’d be jumping through the roof if they even breach the play-in tournament, but there is such a fascinating amalgamation of young good players on this team. There is nothing like seeing people grow into the best versions of themselves. It fills that void within ourselves that urges us to try and do the same…
…Oh, that’s just me? Carry on.
The Magic have had guys they thought could be great before. Of their high draft picks over the past decade there were guys who never lived up to their expectations and are now on other teams (Aaron Gordon), All Stars they traded away (Victor Oladipo, Damontis Sabonis), and one of the worst busts of all time, Mario Hezonja, whom I am embarrassed to say I was pretty hype for at the time. The dude had hops okay!
Trying to turn draft picks into stars is hard, but the Magic are gambling on their ability to do so in a big way. Today, the Magic have 11 players aged 25 or younger (all younger than me, ugh) out of their 14 roster spots. Please understand that it is very out of the ordinary for most NBA teams to have this many young players. They currently have one of the worst records in the league and it’s understandable considering their youth (and by God the injuries). The games are full of mistakes, with moments splashed in-between of immense promise. These guys who I would have thought I was cooler than because I was older than them in middle school will have to overcome a lot to prove they can each be the core to a winning franchise.
I will go through all of these players with their age listed beside them in the order of my excitement level for them. I’ll break down their game, and how they fit into the bigger picture for this team. I hope it encourages you to check out some of their highlights online, or even, gasp… watch an Orlando Magic basketball game.
WARNING: This is going to be a long string of breakdowns. Take breaks. Or don’t! Go crazy! I am!
Paolo Banchero: Power Forward (20)
In the 2022 NBA draft, Orlando took the 6’10, 250 pound forward Paolo Banchero first overall out of Duke. He has since scored the most points in an NBA debut since Lebron James, and the most consecutive 15 point games to open an NBA career since Michael Jordan.
In college, Paolo had the pressure of being labeled the best player in the draft cycle all while playing on Coach K’s final team for the Blue Devils. He powered through all of that pressure (literally and figuratively, did I mention he’s big?)
Paolo is unique because he’s an interior force at his size and strength who happens to also possess guard-like skills as a ball handler and passer. If he has a mismatch in the post, he has a plethora of moves to get by smaller defenders and punish them at the rim. His footwork is pretty advanced for his age, showing off spins and up-and-under moves pretty frequently. He has also already run the pick and roll for the Magic often and is able to get to the rim and force contact so well off them it’s mind-boggling. This is probably the most tantalizing part of his offensive arsenal. He uses his size and skill with the ball to average almost nine free throws a game as a rookie, which is already top five in the league.
Paolo’s also unselfish with the ball and is quick to defer to his teammates when it’s best. He can make really strong passes, although like Matthew Stafford or Josh Allen they sometimes come flying in too hot to handle. However this doesn’t mean his passes are sexy without much thought behind them (see my Too Hot to Handle reference). He can perform some really smart passes for a player who you’d think is all physicality.
He’s also got a solid jumper that could define his progress into superstardom. His height and handling enable him to get great shots in the mid range, and your best move as a defender is often to sag off and let him shoot them. This success from mid range wasn’t in his game as much in college, but he’s already gotten pretty efficient. He doesn’t shoot great from three yet (you might notice a trend start here), but his form is good and there’s enough reason at his age and shooting otherwise to expect improvement. Depending on how much the shooting improves, he has top of the league scoring potential.
Paolo’s main area of concern is his defense, as he had a lot of lapses in college and at times seemed out of the play mentally. This could have seemed worse than it was because Duke runs a unique system that asks players to guard differently from what I’ve heard, but who knows. His wingspan is also below average for a big, so he can’t close the gap on opponents with just his length or serve as a primary shot blocker. He still has shown a lot of encouraging moments on defense where he holds his own. and with his size and side-to-side movement he has a lot of room to improve.
Paolo can also play a little loose at times, leading to turnovers from being overconfident in his passing or ball handling. He also takes jumpers he probably shouldn’t. He has a scorers mentality, and he will need to learn his limits.
Regardless of his faults, Paolo could become a yearly All-NBA player based on his short career so far. Guys with his combination of size and skill are rare, and he could serve as the leading man for a team that has needed one for so long. And fortunately for him, he is not without a running mate…
Franz Wagner: Forward (21)
If Paolo is the brute force 6’10 playmaker, Franz Wagner is more of the finesse 6’10 playmaker, with plenty of his own toughness. Franz Wagner was drafted by Orlando a few spots after Jalen Suggs in 2021 at number 8 overall, and was regarded in that draft cycle as a solid player who doesn’t offer high upside and would best fit to plug and play for a win-now team. He only averaged 12 points his last season at Michigan due to his lower usage.
Instead, Orlando drafted him and he has shown there is way more to him than the public perceived.
Franz averaged 15 points on 47% from the field, 35% from three and 86% from the free throw line his first season. That’s impressive efficiency for a rookie. Now in his second year he’s doing much of the same while commanding more of the offense, and has bumped that scoring mark up to about 20 ppg. Franz is an excellent all-around player with no clear holes to his game outside of not being an imposing post player or rim protector. Seriously, I don’t know what else he’s not good at.
What most makes him great is his control and soft touch around the basket. He uses his height and long arms to swerve around defenders in the pick and roll and either lay the ball in off the backboard or find his teammates. Despite not having wow-worthy athleticism, Franz is quick and can get to the rim in a flash. Although a bit streaky, his shooting has a long range, and he is not afraid to take tough shots. When he gets hot he can take over the game. He also handles the ball well enough to surprise defenders with sharp crossovers and step-backs threes. He even has a Dirk-fade in his arsenal (he is German after all).
His offensive toolkit is just seemingly endless. Even without the ball, he is a fantastic cutter to the basket. Despite all of these offensive skills, coming out of college his defense is what the media discussed the most about him due to his switch-ability at his size. I wouldn’t say he projects as a high level defender, but he is a positive on the other end and gives a defense plenty of options for how to play.
Paolo and Franz are the two pillars of this franchise’s future that so far play at a level above everybody else on the team. However, there are about five other guys who I believe can join them if they can get healthy and improve some key points to their game.
Bol Bol: Center/Forward (22)
When I first made this list, Bol Bol was much further down. After seeing him blossom with this team now finally healthy and getting playing time, it’s become hard for me to ignore his talent and not get excited about him.
Bol Bol is the son of former 7’7 NBA player Manute Bol. Bol Bol is listed at 7’2, 220 lbs with a 7’8 wingspan. He can shoot really well and has handles like a guard. Yes, I said he is 7’2 and can shoot well with handles like a guard.
He was destined to be a top three pick in the 2019 draft, but fell to the second round of the draft due to durability (and maybe also work ethic) concerns.
Bol gets attention online anytime he does anything, because it’s just unbelievable at times how someone his size can play like he does. He looks like an alien on the court with his Mr. Fantastic-esque arms. He will seem far away from a shooter and then close out in two steps and reach up to block their shots. Orlando has often started him at the three spot this season and his efficiency has been through the roof. He consistently has a Player Efficiency Rating in the 20s, which rivals that of Paolo Banchero for his level of positive impact. When he, Paolo, and Franz are on the court together it is one of the most effective three man lineups in the NBA. Having someone out there that can shoot around 70% at the rim, shoot threes (he’s shooting above 40% so far in 2022), and provide massive paint protection is so valuable. Then he brings out those handles every now and then and you are ready to put him in the hall of fame.
He definitely has a lot of room to improve before he deserves that talk though. He is pretty turnover prone, and tries to do too much with the ball. His biggest issue on the court right now though is his difficulty guarding players on the perimeter, alongside his slight frame that weakens him against bigger centers. He can be mismatched, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t strike fear into offensive players when they have to put up a shot against him.
He has yet to play a full season combined despite being in the league for three years now, and he does not have a great feel for when to turn his aggression on and off. He will turn down open shots a lot. Bol lacks the natural feel for the game right now that only comes from time and chemistry with your teammates, but it’s getting better.
There is also the question of his work ethic. I’m somewhat speculating here, but he has been on multiple teams already in his short career and they have each passed on him. There have been reports of his drive to be great being an issue, and whether or not he got into basketball solely because of his father pushing him to. I mean think about it, if your father was an NBA player and you were as tall and long as Bol is, you’d expect you’d feel pressured to have a similar path as him. He’s also still so young, and not every 22 year old has that kind of drive. You can point to his injury history and that could be the only reason for his lack of success, but with his physical traits it’s fair to question if he has held himself back. In the end, all that matters is whether he has the urge to be great now, and from all reports I’ve heard he is all about turning his career around for The Magic.
Orlando took a cheap gamble when they traded a second rounder for Bol Bol (and got a second rounder back, sheesh they really destroyed the Pistons there), but it’s looking like it could have a massive pay off if he keeps working on his game. At the very least, he offers something most teams aren’t used to facing, and because he’s so versatile you can use him in many lineup combinations. If Bol Bol can finally stay healthy in a good situation for his own growth he still has a lot of promise. He is so fun to watch that everyone hopes he will succeed so they can keep watching him, except for maybe his ex-girlfriend who went on an Instagram spree about him cheating on her a few months ago, but I digress…
Moving on!
Markelle Fultz: Point Guard (24)
Seeking a franchise point guard in 2019, the Magic traded for the former number one overall pick Markelle Fultz (24). Fultz had a tumultuous first couple of years in the league, to say the least. It was riddled with injuries, the yips, and fans claiming he was faking a shoulder injury to excuse his shooting woes. It was a combination of issues and doubt that made his initial career a nightmare.
It also made him incredibly easy to root for.
In college, Markelle Fultz played well-deserving of the number one pick. “Kelle” (as all eight of us true Orlando fans know him) has a unique style of movement around the basketball court. He has an ability to bend and weave his way through traffic with excellent balance to get wherever he wants and find his teammates. It really stands out when you watch him. He moves in such an odd way while still being in complete control. One of his best traits is also his speed and strong finishing at the rim. He isn’t prime Derrick Rose or Ja Morant in this regard since he doesn’t have that kind of vertical leap, but it’s an underrated strength of his game.
He also showed signs of being able to hit tough jump shots…in college. He hit around 41% of his college threes which was great on paper, but many are aware that the college three point line is shorter than the NBA’s. His shooting form (as discussed in a YouTube video from TREESE) takes a lot of power from his upper body instead of his lower body. This limits his range and makes longer shots have an awkward release, especially on catch and shoot attempts. This wasn’t an issue in college because he didn’t have to shoot from that far as much, and he had the ball in his hands most of the time so he could take the shots he was most comfortable with.
Out the gate when he was drafted, early poor shooting from Fultz turned into a Chernobyl-sized panic on the part of the Philadelphia 76ers, who no longer could trust the process with him. He was shooting uncomfortable free throws, and along with a shoulder injury that affected his shot he went through a shooting funk while he attempted to correct his form. The Sixers couldn’t wait for him to figure out his shooting problem as they wanted to contend immediately, so they moved him and his number one overall pick salary for future 1st and 2nd round picks. By some unbelievable luck those picks turned out to be Tyrese Maxey and Matisse Thybulle, a borderline all-star guard and one of the best perimeter defenders in the league… so the Sixers are probably happy with that one.
Unfortunately, it’s possible his odd movement style that makes him great also contributes to the lengthy injury history he has accrued. He has suffered a torn ACL, and several other hiccups including that shoulder problem that have kept him from getting a complete season in the league. He even missed the start of this season with a broken toe, ugh. Injuries may be what has most held him back from becoming a star, not his play on the court.
Regardless of the obstacles he has faced in the NBA, at the time of the draft he was viewed as almost a total package at point guard. The main questions were actually about his passing – an area he has excelled at when he’s been on the court in the NBA.
Although Fultz only played 14 games last year after recovering from the ACL tear, he averaged 20 points, 10 assists, and over 2 steals per game per 36 minutes in that span. This season with Paolo and Franz having high usage he has served as more of an initiator, and this may be his best role in the NBA. He’s good at taking command of an offense and getting things in order. He’s a true point guard.
Fultz may never be a great three point shooter, but he has shot well so far this season and has quietly developed a strong mid-range game that allows him to open up defenses and show off the rest of his playmaking skills. Since he’s barely been on the court people also don’t realize how good of a defender he is. He’s excellent at getting around screens and has the elite lateral quickness to stay in front of ball handlers.
When Fultz is in the lineup, the Magic are consistently a better team, and man it’s easy to pull for him after everything he’s been through in his short career.
Jalen Suggs: Guard (21)
You know the kid in school who could always walk into a test without studying and get an A? That is Jalen Suggs on a basketball court. The 6’5 205 lbs Suggs has great athletic instincts after excelling at both football and basketball in high school, which was still only two years ago. He’s still a bit of a raw prospect. Now in the NBA he has to learn the intricacies of how to play at the NBA’s pace.
Jalen’s a defensive pest and high level passer with quick burst and a football player’s build. He could have been a college quarterback, and only in the NBA is he now dedicating all of his time to basketball for the first time in his life. Right now he makes a lot of mistakes, turning the ball over and forcing tough jump shots while he isn’t a great shooter yet. He is the most difficult to evaluate prospect of this group, with all of the tools to become a great two way guard but also the possibility that he just never puts his game all together. I lean toward the former.
Suggs shined in college at Gonzaga, making a lot of heady plays and wowing at times with his burst, strength at the guard spot, and terrific defense. As mentioned he is also an excellent passer, often making impressive full court dimes in transition and just being able to find open teammates out of nowhere.
The biggest obstacle for Suggs is his shooting and lack of an elite handle, which limits his chances to draw help defenders and show off his passing chops. Suggs was only an okay shooter in college, often hovering around the low thirties in his three point percentage. Then he struggled badly as a shooter in his rookie season in the NBA (you heard this story before?). However he shows enough flashes and depth to his shot for me to expect it will improve, and it’s also normal for a rookie to shoot a bit poorly. It’s all just not consistent enough yet, but unlike Fultz the form is not a concern.
Suggs was also already one of the better perimeter defenders in the NBA as a rookie, something that will keep him around in the league regardless of if the rest of his game doesn’t ever fully come together. He frequently flys into passing lanes for steals and makes life hard for opposing point guards. He also averages about a block a game and surprises players a lot with his chase-down attempts.
One of his best traits is his play in the big moments. I’m obligated to mention he hit the half court buzzer-beater that sent Gonzaga to the NCAA championship in 2021, but his most impressive basketball moment has probably been putting up 26 points and 9 assists in his breakout game against the Warriors early this season. In that game he made two threes in the last couple of minutes to go along with two steals against Steph freaking Curry to end the game. A few games later he took down the Bulls at the buzzer too, and since then he’s been out with an ankle issue. This kid gets locked in when the team needs him to be and it’s encouraging so early on.
Jalen will probably never win any league-wide scoring titles, but if he is able to slow the game down and play to his strengths he is the type of smart guard who can be crucial for a contending team. I’m cautiously optimistic, but he needs patience – both in his play on the court and from the rest of the organization. It’s really a toss up between him and Fultz for the best guard long term for this team, and Suggs might have more potential. He’s already showing improvement this season, and I’m hoping it continues for him because he’s shown he can be a heck of a player.
Wendell Carter Jr: Center/Power Forward (23)
In 2020, insert overused joke about the pandemic here, the team blew everything up and traded away it’s only veteran players. Through these moves they acquired the 6’10 former 7th pick – Duke big man (another one) Wendell Carter Jr. He is on the smaller side for a center, but he showed snippets of a wide range of skills out of college. He can shoot, set up teammates, and defend multiple positions. However, he was not the focal point of his college offense and he doesn’t have the type of length that puts up good shot-blocking numbers.
When he was drafted to the Chicago Bulls he struggled offensively. Chicago started to develop a contender and then decided they couldn’t wait to keep developing him, so they traded him for Orlando’s best player in Nikola Vucevic, who was then in his thirties, and a draft pick that would become Franz Wagner.
After the trade to Orlando, Wendell Carter Jr. has grown in his game and even played like the best player on the Magic last year, putting up 18 points-per-game after the all-star break. He has shown all of the ability he had in college, and most impressively has become a good defender against both bigs and wings. Online you can see clips of him defending against the likes of Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic and he holds his own more than you’d expect for someone his size.
He is poised, and plays like a veteran despite still being 23. He has clearly taken on a leadership role for the team. It helps that he and Franz Wagner seem to have a natural connection on the court. They are fantastic running pick and rolls together with Wendell either rolling to the basket for lobs or getting open shots. Wendell is also on a steal of a contract for the next few years that was signed before he really started to take off, so he’s going to be a part of building this young core and will have more chances to show what all he can do.
I don’t think Wendell Carter Jr. should be viewed as a future star yet. I think his lack of elite athleticism and shot making ability could keep him from being a franchise player, but he is proving he is versatile and can be a core piece to a winning team. He reminds me a lot of Al Horford – another big man who wins with his skill over his athleticism and knows how to win games.
Jonathan Isaac: Forward (25)
This current crew of players all started in 2017, Orlando Magic general manager Jeff Weltman’s first season with the team after drafting Giannis Antetokounpo and leaving the Milwaukee Bucks. Maybe he wanted to duplicate what he had in Milwaukee with Giannis, so he started sprinkling in some defense, size and athleticism when Orlando took 6’11 forward Jonathan Isaac 6th overall. Isaac was the first member to join this current iteration of the Magic.
Unfortunately, it hasn’t equated to many wins, since Isaac has not played basketball in two years due to a major leg injury. He has been a permanent member of the injured club. The talk of the past two years for Orlando has been “When will JI be back?”.
When he was last on the court, Isaac was one of the best defenders in the NBA. His quick movement at his 6’11 size makes him a menace for any offensive player. His offensive ability isn’t extensive, as he has never averaged more than about eleven points per game. He is a quality shooter, albeit the comparisons to Kevin Durant he receives are overblown. He can hit open shots, but he’s not someone you look for when you need a bucket. Isaac does serve as a dangerous cutter due to his size and speed, and his ball handling is not bad for a player his size. He is just not a playmaker the way Franz or Paolo are.
Isaac gets comparisons to KD for his size and offensive skill, but it’s his defense that keeps him on the court. He defends like a guard on the perimeter with his quickness while towering over his opponents, and he creates a lot of turnovers having averaged around two steals and two blocks per game his last season. Having a player like this is so valuable in today’s league, because you can put him on the opponents best player and know he’s gonna make life difficult for them.
Isaac is finally approaching playing time, key word approaching – he is still only doing one-on-one drills after all of this time, but there is optimism he will be at full strength for the Magic this season. If Jonathan Isaac can get healthy and continue the ascent he was on when he got injured it would be a huge bonus. However, at this point he’s not a lock to be in the long term plans until he gets back on the court and shows he’s the same guy he was two years ago. We all have to see it again before we can lock him into this core, but there’s no doubt he could still become a great player.
Cole Anthony: Guard (22)
Cole is one of the most likeable players in the NBA. The dude is uber confident in his game, hits tough shots when the team needs them, and is a must watch any time he’s interviewed on the sideline. He’s the son of former NBA player and analyst Greg Anthony, and this dude speaks his mind at all times with endless energy.
Cole has tremendous speed and vertical leap paired with a quality jumper. He goes from zero to full speed in an instant, and is crafty at finding ways to finish at the rim. If you just watch his highlights, he looks like he would be unstoppable. He’s the guy you give the ball to when you need a bucket with no questions asked.
The issues with Cole are his size and playmaking ability. He’s a bit small for the league at around 6’2, which isn’t a death knell for his ceiling, but it means he needs to be superb in other areas to make up for the defensive liability his lack of size brings. He is also held back by his unimpressive moments as a decision-maker, He isn’t a high level passer, and he takes tough shots when he doesn’t need to.
Cole is pretty straightforward to evaluate. He is a spark plug on offense and time will tell if he can iron out the little parts of his game that keep him from being more dominant on both ends. Regardless of his issues, there is no doubt he is fearless. If he stepped up and became one of the leading scorers in the long run for this team it wouldn’t be a shocker. Most people view him as a scoring 6th man, and I think that’s his likeliest outcome.
Mo Bamba: Center (24), Chuma Okeke: Forward (24) and RJ Hampton: Guard (21)
I’m putting all three of these guys together because I think they are more long shots to stick around on this team for the future, but they are all still worth discussion.
The 6’7 Chuma Okeke has shown the most consistency of this trio. Chuma is a solid shooter and sometimes exceptional defender who may stick around if he accepts his role with the rest of the core. He can put the ball on the floor a bit, and has had glimpses where he makes huge shots for the team. He can be a solid wing defender as he has had some great games limiting star players (Luka Doncic for example went 8/29 against him recently). His size reminds me of Jaylen Brown, but he’s far from the explosive athlete and scorer Brown is. If JI can’t stay healthy and play well when he comes back, Chuma could be a candidate to step into a similar role as a 3 and D type of player.
Mo Bamba, the skinny big man, former sixth overall pick, and popular Sheck Wes song, with a 7’10 wingspan…can honestly be infuriating to watch. You see him in the paint with his enormous length and expect him to get rebounds and block shots, but it just… doesn’t happen enough. He is either a step behind the play a lot, or he doesn’t realize he needs to use his size and be physical in key moments. He can go on streaks where he rebounds hard and shoots the ball really well, but it doesn’t happen enough and he has not shown he can create his own looks.
We are now in Bamba’s fifth season. At this point, we have an understanding of what he offers. The hopes for him are tempered, although big men are known to blossom much later than other positions, so the team can try and be patient after resigning him for two more years this offseason (although the second year is non-guaranteed). He recently has more competition after Bol Bol’s emergence, so he will need to show improvement soon to keep getting chances to stick around.
The last young player on the roster is Rj Hampton. Although he has not played that poorly, the team has not been giving him consistent minutes and declined his player option, so he might not be back next year.
Leveling Up:
This team when fully realized is going to be tough to defend with their several big playmakers, and tough to score on with their length and speed to the ball. Paolo and Franz are going to lead this team for now while we all wait for the rest of the team to, in the words of head coach Jamahl Mosley, “Level Up”. This team needs to grow together and build chemistry with each other to take their games to the next level.
This group of talented players doesn’t all necessarily fit well together yet. In this phase of youth, the team hasn’t traded for the right players to make everything click. After this season, if guys can finally be healthy, it will be time to see what the core of this team can do together with a better understanding of each other’s games.
It’s so exciting seeing young players fighting to be recognized and prove themselves in a league that is so tough on newcomers. You can see the confidence growing in them with every win, even if there aren’t many yet. Maybe I’m just setting myself up for massive disappointment and these players will never develop into a great team. I’m hopeful though that in time Orlando may finally break its streak of mediocrity and show the league this isn’t the same old Orlando Magic.
It’s time to Level Up.
Whitman Can’t Jump 