Orlando Magic silent on first day of free agency; Otto Porter Jr. headed to Warriors

There was only one team in the NBA that didn’t make a move during the first day of free agency on Monday: the Orlando Magic.

The Magic brass stood pat as hundreds of millions of dollars were exchanged on the NBA open market. No problem there. Let the kid’s play.

With a rebuilding team and a rookie coach, no need for a rebuilding team to overpay for veterans when the rotation is crowded with players in need of minutes and development.

The Magic did lose one of their incumbent veterans, as expected. Otto Porter Jr. reportedly will sign with the Golden State Warriors on a minimum deal.

The 28-year-old, who was in the final year of a four-year $106.6 million contract, came to the Magic as part of the Nikola Vucevic deal at the trade deadline. The former No. 3 overall pick played in just three games for Orlando, averaging 8.0 points and 4.7 rebounds in 22 minutes per before missing the remainder of the season with a foot injury.

The Magic will have at least two roster spots to fill, and possibly more depending on if they trade Terrence Ross and/or waive Dwayne Bacon before his $1.8 salary becomes guaranteed in mid-August.

Even after their midseason fire sale, the Magic don’t have much financial flexibility in free agency this offseason, with essentially just the $9.5 million midlevel exception available to spend.

But, even with a need for additional shooting and a third-string center, it was radio silence in Orlando on Monday...

We’ll see what Day 2 has in store.