Do You Believe in Magic Podcast: Grading the Offseason

The Orlando Magic have all but finished their work this offseason, and DYB team is here to grade it for them!

Following a disappointing 25-57 season, a great deal of change was in order for the perennial lottery bound Orlando Magic.

After firing Head Coach Frank Vogel, President Jeff Weltman and General Manager John Hammond went to work:

Out:

Vogel, Mack, Hezonja, Biyombo, Artis, Purvis, Afflalo, Speights

In:

Clifford, Bamba, Briscoe, Grant, Caupain, Martin, Mozgov, $1 million in $$$

The Magic have been diligent in overhauling their locker room, but the starting lineup will likely remain unchanged in the 2018-2019 season.

Here is a look at depth chart as it stands now:

PG: Augustin – Grant – Briscoe – Caupain (two way)

SG: Fournier – Iwundu – Frazier Jr.

SF: Ross – Simmons

PF: Gordon – Isaac – Martin

C : Vucevic – Bamba – Mozgov - Birch

The Magic will not have much continuity to propel them into the season, however, as their starting unit combined to miss 139 games in the previous season.

D.J. Augustin will be expected to carry quite a significant load in Clifford’s new offense as the team’s primary ball handler. Clifford’s Hornets were known for their ball security in his four year tenure, ranking in the top two in the turnover margin in each of his seasons.

Gordon, Vucevic, and Augustin, alone, combined to turn the ball over 5.3 times last season per game.

If the Magic can become better caretakers of the ball, it will lead to fewer transition opportunities for their opponents, and allow the Magic’s defense to settle into its half court sets. This, will in turn, increase the Magic’s productivity on the defensive end, where Clifford’s teams ranked in the top ten in three of his four seasons.

“You want to play with pace,” Steve Clifford said. “You want to be inside-out. We want to be low-turnover. Then you look at the things that work in the league: threes, layups, getting to the free-throw line. And all of that is determined by helping the better offensive players play to their strengths and having multiple ways where you can get them so they can play to their strengths. That basically is what every NBA team tries to do.”

While Clifford’s offenses were typically the slowest in the NBA, last season the Hornets ranked ninth, indicating the Magic may not be as slow under Clifford as we may be expecting.

Join Aaron Goldstone and Will Ogburn as they break down the offseason additions and how they will translate to the regular season.

Then the OPP team breaks down the Magic’s recent trade for 24-year-old, Jarell Martin. The 6’10” power forward further shores up the front court, and may even provide spacing, as his three point shooting touch improved to 34% last season.

In the three days since the Magic acquired Dakari Johnson, he was shipped yet again to Memphis. The deal will save Memphis over a million dollars in salary this season, and they sent the Magic back one million in cash to seal the deal.

But in a front court featuring seven players, just how much of a look will Martin get before the Magic come to decide on his $3.5 million team option for 2019-2020?

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