The Orlando Magic agreed to a $70 million, four-year deal with free agent center Bismack Biyombo. While it is a great signing, it only leaves the Magic’s frontcourt more congested and more confusing.
The only certain thing at this point is that the Magic still have some work to do in balancing its roster.
Defensively, though, the upgrade will be huge.
Biyombo is an elite shot blocker and joins force with another new Magic man, Serge Ibaka, to give the Magic one of the toughest defensive frontcourts in the Eastern Conference.
Teams will think twice about taking it to the rim now. Last year it was a sheer disaster when teams sought to penetrate.
But lost in these changes and upgrades are what could become of Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic. The Magic also agreed to a one-year $15 million deal with Jeff Green. Orlando now has five players of starting caliber talent with only three starting frontcourt gigs available.
Then, there is the matter of egos: Would incumbent starting center Nikola Vucevic accept a role off the bench? Likely not.
Is demoting the blossoming Aaron Gordon a prudent choice? Again, likely not.
But the Magic are blessed with a newfound depth that is going to invoke some tough decisions on the part of GM Rob Hennigan.
Biyombo really blossomed during the playoffs, and the Magic are taking a certain calculated risk in assuming he can keep that high level of play up. One need only to turn the clock back to the likes of Jerome James and Isaac Austin ("Who?" Exactly.) to see the folly in rewarding guys on a small sample size. Projections can be a precarious science.
What does this do for Orlando's team defense?
The Magic need to take risks to move up in the hierarchy of the league, and Biyombo is one such wise risk. He is an absolute monster on the boards and can deeply impact games with his defensive playmaking.
Ibaka, too, will give the Magic the weak-side help needed when perimeter players are beaten off the dribble. While the Magic did have to give up on the promise of 2013 No. 2 overall pick Victor Oladipo to obtain Ibaka, the experiment with Elfrid Payton and Oladipo as a starting backcourt had started to run its course. Neither are great shooters (though Oladipo thrives in mid-range), and the Magic chose to go with the floor spacing of sharpshooting Frenchman Evan Fournier over the energetic defensive play of Oladipo.
Fournier re-signed with the Magic for five seasons at a total cost of $85 million. He will be penciled in as the lone sharpshooter in the starting lineup, barring another drastic move of course. Fournier was the only Magic player to shoot over 40 percent from three (excluding Ersan Ilyasova who played just 22 games in Orlando before being dealt with Oladipo and the rights to No. 11 overall pick Domantis Sabonis).
Jeff Green is not much better from behind the arc than Aaron Gordon (32 percent and 30 percent, respectively), so the Magic will have to sub in shooters like newly acquired Jodie Meeks and D.J. Augustin frequently. Both are capable of lighting it up—but they are also both extremely streaky.
Even so, the Magic really entered this offseason with only two good shooters from three, Fournier and 2015 first round pick Mario Hezonja, who struggled somewhat as a rookie before blossoming over the final two months of the season.
The roster just is still not balanced.
What do Orlando's moves this offseason mean for the future of the team?
There is more talent and it fits together, but Vucevic is likely the odd man out of Orlando’s talented rotation. He could be dealt before the season, but considering he makes just $12 million per year and Orlando’s hand is practically forced, do not expect the Magic to get a fantastic return for his services. It is hard to even venture how badly teams may lowball the Magic.
Whatever the case, Orlando may make the best move it can for another backcourt sharpshooter. Spacing is vital.
Though head coach Frank Vogel now has a defensive club he can thrive with, the Magic will likely continue to have issues with court spacing. It may even be that Elfrid Payton plays his way out of the lineup, barring another jump in his three-point percentage, of course. Payton knocked down a passable 32 percent last season after hitting just 26 percent as a rookie. Another small increase possibly to 35 or 36 percent makes him a good shooter; a guy with the green light to let it fly.
But unless that happens, it may be that Jodie Meeks and Augustin see a good chunk of playing time. Former coach Scott Skiles often preferred Brandon Jennings over Payton for just that reason. Vogel can get a lot out of this roster, but he also cannot transform guys into better shooters. That is on their own time and hard work in the offseason.
So, on one hand, this is a Magic roster that is greatly improved. It upgraded coaches due to Skiles’ bewildering resignation. And the Magic should have “all systems go” for a 2017 playoff berth. But for the meantime, this is a roster still in transition and lacking some components.
It is difficult to see how it all fits together, but we also do not know what changes are still to come. There will be some, rest assured.
Gordon could become the sixth man, or it could be Jeff Green. Whatever the case, the Magic now have five starting-caliber forwards and centers, and only three starting positions to give away, obviously.
Considering Biyombo will make $4 million more than Vucevic, it seems folly to project that he will still be a backup center.
The Magic proved they are committed to heading a different direction, but exactly how it will be done is nothing but guesswork at this point. It seems safe to say the Vucevic era is officially over, but Hennigan still has more work to do before we see that happen.