Predicting the NBA Eastern Conference standings: Orlando Magic
CEILING: Bottom-3 in East
FLOOR: No. 1 pick
The Orlando Magic will not win many games next season. Not if Jonathan Isaac comes back at full strength. Not if Markelle Fultz comes back at full strength. Not if Jamahl Mosley is the greatest coach in league history. No matter what, this Orlando team, with this roster, is going to lose a lot of games.
That is, of course, the goal. Orlando is at the beginning of a long and potentially fruitful rebuild. Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner are great building blocks. Suggs could win Rookie of the Year with all the reps he’s about to get. Orlando, when healthy, may even field a pretty staunch defense. They will fight hard and show flashes, but in the end, you need offense to win games, and the 2021-22 Magic will not have much of it.
Isaac is still Orlando’s cornerstone right now. He is the player around whom this rebuild is centered. Suggs has a good chance to assume that mantle in the near future, but Isaac’s wide-ranging defense, intriguing offensive skill set, and positional versatility make him a future All-Star if he can stay on the floor. All-Star may not be in the cards for Markelle Fultz, but he’s probably the team’s next-best player when healthy. The recovery arc of those two will define Orlando’s season.
The depth of young talent and long, athletic bodies on Orlando’s roster is truly tantalizing. There’s finally a shape and direction to the franchise that wasn’t there when last season started. The front office is moving things in the right direction. Now, all it takes is patience.