Orlando Magic Free Agency Q&A | Magic to add Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Orlando Magic Free Agency Q&A | Magic to add Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

the big day is here it is free agency it starts in 30 minutes so let’s get you ready with the big news for the Orlando Magic what’s possible what their plans are and answer your questions as we prepare to react live to the first moments of free agency it is June 30th it is time for lock on Magic Live you are locked on Magic your daily Orlando Magic podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team everyday and you are indeed locked on Magic today is June 30th 2024 it will be July 1st 2024 the NBA New Year the calendar flips over contracts roll over and we enter a brand new NBA calendar year my name is Philip Rosman Reich I should put that back up my name is Philip Rossman re I’m the senior writer over at orlandomagic daily.com of course follow me on Twitter Philip rror on today’s episode of lock on Magic we’re gonna go over everything you need to know to get ready for free agency which again starts in about 30 minutes if you’re watching us live on YouTube if you’re listening to us um you can skip ahead 30 minutes uh to get to the live reaction to free agency uh I’m going to take this time of course to answer your questions I do see your comments there on the YouTube page I will be getting to those very very shortly um and prepare to kind of preview preview what we can expect from the orlandoo magic things that may be relevant tomorrow or could be irrelevant here in 30 minutes as well we’re going to get to all that coming up here in just a moment but first I want to thank you all again for making lock on Magic part of your day every day no matter when you listen to us whether you’re watching us live listening to us first thing in the morning or whenever you listen to us we truly appreciate you making locked on Magic part of your day every day remember there’s a great lock on podcast covering every single team in the NBA to search for lockdown and the team you’re looking for the lockon podcast Network it’s your team every day today’s episode of lockdown magic is brought to you by FanDuel make every moment more as the playoffs have wound down as Sports except for baseball and soccer go dormant this summer fandel is hooking up all customers with a boost or a bonus daily that’s right there’s something for everyone every day all summer long visit fanduel.com lockon to get started that’s what I get for going off script um obviously let’s let’s let’s just address the elephant in the room first um last night Adrian wowski of ESPN reporting that Paul George the big fish in free agency the guy that is potentially the only Max free agent who is going to move teams this this off season will take a meeting with the LA Clippers the team that that that holds his rights at the moment uh the Philadelphia 76ers and the Orlando Magic now reporting has come out here in the last few hours I think I think it’s I think we could say last few hours that suggested Philadelphia 76ers are indeed the favorites to land Paul George and I don’t think that’s necessarily a surprise I’ve had Paul George as a a sort of shorefire Philadelphia 76er for a while they have an MVP candidate in Joel embiid they have a ton of resources still to still add to their roster they are closer to a championship or at least more provably closer to a championship than the Orlando Magic this is not to knock the Orlando Magic I’m gonna come back to them here in a second um but it always a felt like the magic weren’t quite ready to fully commit to everything Paul George is um as I said on my previous pods talking about Paul George I don’t have a basketball reason not to pursue Paul George there’s a lot to say about Paul George he is still an All-Star level player he is an elite catch and shoot three-point shooter would give the magic that element that they so desperately need and he gives them the versatility as someone who can attack can create can be a a score in his own right Beyond just three-point shooting that kind of Versatility is what the magic are looking for plus he has the size plus we know he can play some defense the concerns with Paul George have always been about injuries he’s uh he had a good he had a healthy season last year but he has struggled with injuries throughout his career and age he is entering his year 34 season if you sign him to a four-year deal he will be 38 this is Paul George going for his last big contract I have been very skeptical on the magic pursuing Paul George on two fronts first that the magic would want to commit essentially all of their $50 million in cap room to Paul George to one player they have multiple needs on this roster we’re going to address those here in a minute but the magic have multiple needs on their roster I don’t think they can fully commit to one player and maintain the depth that has been the Hallmark of this team over the last several years the years are also very concerning um I think the magic want to maintain some nimbleness maintain some Financial flexibility while the salary cap is going to increase we saw that the salary cap numbers come in today a little bit lower than expected 140.5 million $140.5 million salary cap next year’s cap will jump up to 154 they are anticipating a 10% raise in the salary cap because of the new TV deal but the magic law will be paying fron Vagner poo banero and jayen Suggs over the next two years I think the magic want to maintain some Financial flexibility we’ll get to some strategies here in our next segment so I as much excit as there is and and we’ll I’ll I’ll dip into the comments here in a minute um as much excitement as there is about uh about Paul George and the potential of Paul George I don’t think he is the right move for this team at the moment but that’s not the point of all this is it that’s that’s not the point of the report that came out from W yesterday I think a lot of magic fans have been potentially excited about the potential bringing in Paul George someone’s going to pay him the money it’s who’s going to give him the max is he going to convince Philadelphia to give him essentially a $200 million deal two year 200 million four years the magic may the magic may not the point of it is though the magic are in the room and this is the important thing to think about as we get out into free agency and get out into this transaction window Jeff welman said I believe he said it after the season if he didn’t say it he said it Monday uh during during before the draft there are now doors open for the Orlando Magic that have not been opened before there are now conversations this team can have with agents with free agents with with people around the league that they have not been able to have really in a decade think about this your orl magic had this much cap room last year they had a ton of a cap room last year and all they could really manage and the potential like everyone could see oh Palo ban Carrol is going to be an All-Star very very soon this team was the last team eliminated from playoff contention you know they were essentially a 500 team after from December to the end of the season everyone could see this magic team was coming and yet the biggest free agent the magic got was a two-year $22 million overpay for Joe Engles now some of that I think was intentional some of that I think was Jeff wman saying I believe in what we have I believe in the culture we building let’s keep it together let’s give this team a chance to grow let’s see what we have before we go out and make moves and adjustments but now things have changed Pao Bano is an All-Star and the way that he performed in the playoffs averaging about 28 points per game three 30-point games in the playoffs a 34-point outing uh in or 38o outing in game seven the magic getting to a game seven in a first round playoff series with this young team that served notice around the league that told everyone around the league the magic are ready to win it opened those doors it opened the door for the magic to have this conversation with Paul George because the Detroit Pistons have just as much cap room as as the magic do the Detroit Pistons aren’t having conversations with anybody maybe they’ll jump in Splash a but you know put a big brown sack with a dollar sign on it in front of Isaiah hartenstein and say please come here but any player who is serious about about winning no offense to our friends that locked on Pistons no one who’s serious about winning is going to go visit the Detroit Pistons right now the magic may not be the favorites to land Paul George but they are in the room and that means every move and this should be obvious but every move the magic make from here on out is about winning it’s about getting this team closer to a championship every trade everything we talk about now is about that goal I would argue a lot of this offseason is not necess is about making the team better don’t get me wrong but it’s about setting the chess board for when the magic don’t have this cap room they have a two-year window to spend some money and obviously you have to spend some money this year to get to 90% of the salary cap so that they can get luxury tax payments and and and avoid that that massive cap hold the magic have the magic are going to spend this summer The question is how aggressive are they going to be and being in the room with Paul George having that door open to them should mean that they are very very aggressive this is as Jeff welman loves to tell us an exciting time to be a magic fan it really is because while the magic may not end up signing Paul George and and I’m again we’ll see we’ll see if I’m lying here in 20 minutes um I am skeptical I am skeptical that they will give a four-year deal to Paul George I’m skeptical that they would give a four-year Max to Paul George um they’re not they’re not desperate to win a championship they know their window is open but not closing them um I am very skeptical that the magic would do would would would kind of push all their chips in for Paul George at his age with his injury history knowing this team’s hesitancy to spend their their their desire to be financially responsible their desire to be financially Nimble I don’t think this is their Allin move but also it’s very clear the magic are in that room they’re in that conversation and they have to be thinking about those big moves to push this team forward and make them contenders so if Paul George is at the boo what is we’ll talk about some of the other free agency rumors I’ll get to your comments and questions we’ll get to that coming up here in just a moment but first today’s episode of lockon magic is brought to you by friends at FanDuel look summer is not the best time in sports unless you’re a big baseball fan and if you’re a big baseball fan then it is a great time in sports but NBA’s done NHL’s done NFL is on the horizon college football is not happening no college basketball summer can be a little bit empty when it comes to a sports fans but FanDuel has a 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local experts like me who know what we’re talking about when it comes to this team lockdown sportsday brings you can’t miss analysis opinions and news streaming 247 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels at part of the lock podcast Network that’s your team every day so we are doing a live show I want to make sure I include you guys here I want to get that big first statement out we’ll talk I’m going to talk a little bit more about where the magic go without Paul George if they don’t get Paul George uh what some of the alternative plans might be because I do think the magic are going to be working two maybe three different tracks down here as we think about what the magic are going to do um so we’ll get to that in a minute but let me let me get to some of your questions here uh as as veram says here not a day for conser conservative commentary field today we think big my friends think big and and look I 100% agree with this 100% the time to think conservatively is is is pretty much over now I I don’t think you’d be Reckless with this I don’t think that you’re reckless and just spending wildly and not thinking about the future you know the magic here this is this is kind of the difference here Philadelphia has to win immediately Joel embiid has is a is is a ticking clock you know he’s got his injuries he’s in his prime the Sixers need to do whatever they can to win a championship this year to me Orlando’s window is three to five years um you know I don’t think you know realistically they’re probably not winning a championship this year so the urgency to do something big isn’t as great but having said that the magiker in a two-year window to spend um we’ve kind of H at this you know every everything kind of revolves around this a little bit the magic have this two-year window to spend they have this year they have next year to spend um because fron vogner he’s going to get a $35 million contract at minimum his max is around $38 million I calculated out to 250 something I I did the math I I can actually look this up here real fast uh since I did the math already uh fron vogner will have a Max contract that starts at $ 38.7 million and I was wrong his max his max fiveyear deal if I mathed correctly is five years $226.1 million on top of this Jaylen Suggs I think we can expect to get a contract somewhere in the 28 to 31 maybe 32 million range so fron is probably looking at 33 to 3637 million contract J Jaylen Suggs in that 28 to 32 range palo’s Max is gonna palo’s Max is gonna end up being like 42 million on that first year um don’t worry about the raw numbers more important is the percentage of the cap $38 million is 25% of next year’s projected cap so this is something that’s hanging in the background and this is why the magic not they have to spend to hit the salary floor hit the kind of salary floor this year um they have to spend because this is the chess board they’re going to have when they hit title contention if this isn’t the year to be title contenders this is kind of to me sorry this is going to sound conservative veram um to me this season is about continuing to establish who you are it’s to repeat what you did this season repeat and improve you want to improve don’t get me wrong you want to improve but the magic got to prove they can do it all again that they can be a top defensive team again that they can uh that they can kind of take this NE this this next step or or that they could say okay we are established as a playoff team and we’re getting better um that’s to me what this season is is is more about now obviously you want to get better if there’s a chance to to B Commerce hins like Indiana did you do that um this is about establishing your pecking order and about setting the table for those trades that you’re going to be able to make when you don’t have salary cap rooming when you are capped out when you are dancing with the first apron when you are maybe dancing with the second apron and again that’s why I think throwing all your money at Paul George isn’t the right right idea but it does mean they should still be aggressive they should still be aggressive to to find needs uh it doesn’t necessarily have to be a free agent they can use their cap space and trades I’d put CJ McCollum on my list I’d put Anthony Simons on my list I’d put um Darius scarland I think has been a name that a lot of people have like I’d go I’d be calling Washington about Malcolm Brogden we will see what the magic ultimately do but I do agree it is a day to think big it’s a day to be aggressive to fulfill needs and every and and the like but having said that I still think the magic um I still think that the magic are in a position where they want to find players that fit their culture and fit their identity I I think again like I said I think this season is as much about hardening the team’s identity and culture and place in line as much as it is about getting better they they need to get better don’t get me wrong I’m not sitting here saying oh take a step back to take a deep breath and like reflect on what you did no no no keep getting better but I do think it’s still about okay let’s not s you know let’s not sacrifice our defense to get a little bit better offensively um that might be why there might be some hesitancy to take Klay Thompson because he’s not the defender he used to be I still think he’s a pretty good Defender and you got Jaylen Suggs next to him so that’ll help um but that might be why the magic aren’t as interested in tus Jones as a lot of fans were because tyus Jones is not a good Defender he’s on the small side it might be why the magic aren’t as interested in anony Simons as fans are because while Simons is an excellent offensive player he’s never been asked to defend a day in his life so maybe you bring him in here you have confidence that he will fit the defensive culture with a team that will teach him that defense and if you believe that go get an fory Simons he’d be a great fit in this team fits the timeline relatively priced well at 25 million around $25 million a year you know if you if you believe that you go for it um to me that’s that’s kind of where I stand uh this has been a question I’ve gotten a lot here Mr Dar why Dar C uh says can you explain if we will have cap space next season if we wait to extend France and Jaylen till next offseason um that question is hard to answer today because we don’t know what the magic are spending now could the magic spend a I don’t think he’d do this but let’s say they do a one-year $35 million deal with Klay Thompson um let’s let’s just say they say hey we’ll give you we’ll give you 40 why not let’s let’s make it even one year 40 for Klay Thompson say just come here for the money play a year and we’ll figure things out next time that obviously releases is $40 million cap hold pending um for next summer for the Orlando Magic and so they would again have cap room they could spend that cap room forward a year um it’s it’s hard to predict what cap space will be the cap is going to increase or is projected to increase by 10% next season because of the new TV deal uh so they they’ll get a little bit of cap room from that a little a little extra cap room from that uh regardless but uh saying saying what the cap space is going to be is I don’t know and because we could sit here and say I don’t know that’s probably a reason to wait um a reason to wait for fron and jaylen’s extension the magic would bring in both back there is no danger in my mind that either player is going to be gone the magic will probably put a contract on the table say hey France here’s a five a fiveyear deal starting at $35 million 8% raises whole nine yards we’re going to put it on the table you could sign it today we’d be happy to bring you back or we can leave it here we’ll keep it on the table here and we will bring it back next year and maybe you’ll be better and we’ll give you a Max uh or it’ll still be here we’re not going to decrease it because we believe in you we just believe that the extra cap room is more valuable at this point we will see what that looks like after free after free agency once free agency calms down we get these contract numbers I will do an episode with the cap with the cap space with what the Magic’s offseason finances look like for from next year we will get to that at we will get to that next after free agency calms down so that that is definitely something that’s that’s hanging around in the background um I have to take a an ad break here but we will talk a little bit more about free agency I’ll continue taking your questions here and then the show begins here in two minutes uh we’ll be we’ll be right back in just a moment oh let me get back to your questions Janine Richmond asks what are your realistic free agent targets for the magic um I think Paul and look I don’t think the magic would take this meeting if they didn’t think they had a real shot at Paul George um maybe it’s posturing maybe it’s the agent saying something uh it does feel like Paul George is trying to it feels like Paul George’s Camp is trying to get the Clippers to give him that Max and give him the money that he wants they’ve been buling at it um you know there’s been the reports that both Philadelphia and Orlando would offer the max if that’s the case if money’s equal I think he picks Philadelphia to be perfectly honest I really do think that I’ve always thought that from the beginning that is a more ready-made championship team I think that cavius calwell Pope is a real option for the magic um two-year $50 million deal sort of like a a Juiced up Joe Engles contract uh at the end of the this this is going to sound real conservative and it’s one of the reasons I don’t love the idea but I get it um essentially to me cavius Caldwell popee is just a better version of uh it’s just a better version of Gary Harris um they took about the same number of three-pointers they uh you know kcp shot a better percentage kcp is a better bigger Defender than Gary Harris is and and I think his defense has been underrated a little bit in this process um but he doesn’t move the needle significantly essentially the magic would be bringing back you the magic would get better like kcp would be a better player um but they’d be essentially the same team as they were last year so on on the continuity front it feels like that fits what the magic typically do um I do think he’s a realistic Target I think again my my my ideal summer has been add a shooter Off the Bench a Gary Trent Jr or buddy heeld I think you could get buddy heeld very cheap probably at the at the mid less than the mid level probably at the taxpayer at the non at the route mid level to it around 8 million if you wanted to to kind of price him at that at that us at that at that point um I do think that that’s a realistic Target and then on the center Front I’ve had Jaylen Smith I’ve interested in the idea of Andre Drummond for some reason even though he’s not much of an offensive player um if ultimately I do think the magiker can bring back goab baz on like a two-year $10 million deal I think they’ll pay him they’ll pay him a HomeTown a HomeTown bonus uh to come back and play that third Center role if that’s what he wants to do I haven’t looked at the guards at the kind of Deep Well of guards but I think he can wait till the end of the summer on that um let’s go through let me go through some of these comments here so I apologize uh for for that uh can we get in a three- team deal with Nola that involve can we get Simons in a three team deal with Nola that involves Wendell Carter Jor uh that is absolutely possible um I would I I I kind of joke with people um that that um trade fake trades are difficult to make anyway um three team trades are even more difficult to make um but there is something there uh I don’t think Portland is as interested in one Carter as they used to be because they drafted Donovan Kling and they’re obviously moving DeAndre Aton around uh perhaps so DeAndre a and Robert Williams both seem very available I would not touch DeAndre Aton I am mildly interested in Robert Williams but only with a good insurance policy on the on the third Center option um but yeah I I think that’s definitely an option like I said I think that Anthony Simons is interesting it is worth exploring it is worth discussing I’m sure it has been disc discussed I don’t think he is a magic type player um and again I think this is a fair criticism because this summer is about risk what risks are you willing to tolerate what risks are you willing to make to kind of disrupt and change the chemistry on this team and I think that part is very underrated about this team success is how well everyone liked each other and how invested everyone was not only in each other but in the project as a whole you know mo vager said this all along this is this season this past season didn’t exist just because of what we’ve done this season this season existed because of three years of work we put together three years of of working uh working together uh and and I think that that really meant something so the magic have to ask themselves like what what can we gamble on a little bit here what what can we you know maybe say what can we be worse at to be better at something else I don’t think an I think anrey Simon’s defensive questions make it really hard to say okay we need to improve our shooting and playmaking Simons checks those boxes but are we giving up too much defensively and I think that’s again that’s ultimately the question um I think that we have this season is about you know this whole this whole project is about Paulo banero um you know the reason why the Magik are in this position is because poo banero is that dude and it’s really to me it’s really important to remember as we talk about all these free agents and really to me the goal of free agency the goal of everything right now is how do we make Pao banero and France Vagner especially make their lives easier um to me that’s the most important thing emphasize their development emphasize their growth give them chances still to explore their games but how do we make their lives easier and at the end of the day like you add a player like Paul George great he elevates this team he makes this team better I’m not going to pretend otherwise uh but the question is how much better is Pao banero going to be this team goes as far as poo banero takes them like all this other stuff is important it needs to get done it you know you need to add to this team you need to get better but this team is poo banero if Palo banero becomes a top five player in the league or top 10 player in the league the magic are gonna be Championship contenders if he plateaus in any way they’re going to be where they’re at if he gets wor in any way they’re going to fall down this project is about poo banero and that’s a lot to put on one guy I hate doing that but that’s the reality of the league the Mavericks are Luca donic the Pacers are Tyrese halberton the Cavs are Donovan Mitchell the heat are Jimmy Butler the Bucks are Yannis and TMO the Sixers are Joel embi the Knicks are Jaylen Brunson the wolves are Anthony Edwards the nuggets are Nicole yic the Thunder are sha gilis Alexander the Lakers are LeBron and AD the suns are Devon Booker and Kevin Durant you can go down the entire list it’s all about the stars and the magic have a really good young star in Palo banero so they’re on the right track they’re on the right path but ultimately their success and and everything else we talk about is about how much better Palo banero gets and and I feel like that is a really important point to to talk about let’s get a draft question in peson asks philli do you think the Silva could be this year’s Hae hawz I have actually called him that I’ve said you know this is a player who is a veteran you know H hak has stayed at UCLA for all four years very successful run at UCLA came in and very much understood immediately what he had to do very smart player very versatile player kind of a sneaky athlete I definitely think that there is a comparison between those two players sorry I’m looking at my phone um I think that there is very much a comparison between those two players both in how they oper R and how they um and how they kind of approach the game their experience level their skill level um I think that’s very much a very apt comparison it was actually one of the reasons I really liked the sil it’s not just this I Thought I Loved a skill set I think his skills are very translatable to the NBA I think that he will be able to kind of find a fit with the with the team as he grows and learns um I I love like if you can’t tell I really like The Pick of trist D Sila I think he’s a really really good player checks every box the magic want um you know he’s he’s kind of what they thought chumo KK was going to be and chumo chumo was younger but dilva just does everything the magic like again the Magic’s philosophy and this goes into free agency as well and what the magic are looking looking for the Magic’s philosophy is to have players who do everything they want players to do everything they want players uh they want players to uh be able to playmake from odd positions and to be to be smart on on that front and so it’s it’s G it’s this is how the team is built they want to be big they want to be athletic they want to be versatile and that’s what they saw the Boston Celtics Boston Celtics just won the championship playing this kind of versatile style um that’s who the magic want to be um Des 10 for greatness ask Philip any chance we make a trade for Trey young um I have always been doubtful of any magic interest in Trey young he is not a good Defender even if he is a Defender trying and I do think he gets a little bit of a bad rap as a Defender he is on the small side I also think he’s just not the kind of point guard the magic are looking for you know the magic are not looking for a point guard that dominates the ball um they got Palo banero they love Palo banero part of what they’re developing Palo banero is he can be a lead playmaker that he can be a triple double you know I don’t think he’ll be a averaging a triple double guy but getting a triple double should not be rare for poo banero you know him making him averaging five assists per game in the playoffs ignore the turnovers for now um that’s part of the growing base honestly I don’t like I remember watching those turnovers in the playoffs and for the most part there are some silly ones in there but for the most part I was like those are turnovers I’m fine Pao making because he’s being aggressive he’s trying to keep others involved he’s trying to read the defense he’s dealing with a lot lot of stuff there um that’s who the magic want him to grow into they want frons to keep increasing his turnovers they want Playmakers at every position and Trey young needs the ball in his hands I I I am very I I think honestly the Tre young de Jon Murray exper Trey young is this generation’s alen Iverson and and he’s not Allen Iverson Allen Iverson’s a better player but I always believe that you know Allen Iverson is the system he is that he is the only player and you saw when he started to decline when Denver traded in Detroit he couldn’t become a role player he couldn’t play with another star play off someone because Allen Iverson plays one way and that’s Not a Bad Thing Allen Iverson is alltime great love watching Allen Iverson play Trey young one of the alltime great off one of the great off not alltime great but one of the great offensive weapons in this league he makes your offense that much better but he doesn’t play off anybody him and Deonte Murray struggled to kind of find that right balance and I don’t think he would I don’t think he would successfully find that balance with poo banero I I think he it would be a real struggle like would the offense be better sure would they win in the playoffs that I’m not convinced of um and so the assets it would take to get Trey young and it would take a lot because you know Atlanta kind of threw off dejonte Murray that was their move they’re building around Trey young Trey young is their guy they’re gonna stick with him I think um I just I just don’t think he is a fit for this team uh in in any way shape or form uh let’s go to here Stephen Mory asks what are some theoretical cam Johnson Trad no you probably saw this uh come out earlier today some reporting connecting the magic to cam Johns at the Nets are entertaining trade offers from several teams including the magic for the sweet shooting forward um I will admit I had trade discussions with lockon Nets about cam Johnson the deal that we had come up with was wend Carter a 2025 second and a 2026 first I believe we might have gone with that weird Suns Wizards pick at the magic hav um so there is a framework for a deal um like I I told him while we were doing the deal while we were making the negotiations is like I I can’t trade Carter until I know I have hartenstein um if the magic do end up signing Isaiah hartenstein and and you know I talked a little bit about him on lock on magic or not on lock on Magic because this is lock on Magic I talked about little little bit on orando Magic daily look isaah hardenstein really good Defender excellent rebounder especially great offensive rebounder a great rim protector um he he he is kind of the the prototypical center we think of great rim protector plays above the rim tall at seven foot big like all that stuff my concern with going after hartenstein is he does not do much offensively besides dump downs and um and putbacks which is fine you could you could make a Liv you can make a living on that um you can you can absolutely make a living with that uh but my issue is is his defense significantly better than wend Carters and the IT test would tell you no Isaiah hartenstein is bigger he is a better rim protector he’s just a bigger body to move and you know I do agree that maybe wend Carter isn’t the answer at Center the the magic might need an Above the Rim uh rim protector like har and Stein is um but wend Carter isn’t that much worse statistically um he is worse I’m not going to sit here and deny that he is a worse Defender and again this is where we talk about risk with wend Carter you have a three-point shooting center you have a spreadable Center uh and I think Carter took too many threes I don’t think he dove into the paint I don’t think he worked the paint enough this season um but his ability to make threes is something the magic need because they’re so bereft of shooting elsewhere having a stretchable big is really valuable for this team as they are constructed now if you get me Klay Thompson and is hartstein maybe my ideas change on that uh but with the all the uncertainty with the magic shooting you know fron vogner getting back up to 35% would go a long way um it’s tough so I’ve been very like I think any trade involving the magic the market wants them to trade Jonathan Isaac for anything significant the market wants them to trade Jaylen sugs for anything significant and the magic don’t want to do that I think any trade involving the magic involves wend car so if the magic have a trade in place if the magic do have something for Cameron Johnson or for an Anthony Simons or for whoever that that means they got to get Isaiah hartenstein first all of its contingent on signing a starting caliber Center like Isaiah hartstein um jel McQueen asks give AB a chance to prove himself he’s still a rookie he needs to devel I know he has potential so I’m willing to give him a chance to show what he can do at point guard and I completely agree with this jeel one of the more important things the magic can do this summer or this season is make sure there is a path for these for for Anthony black as well as jet Howard to play um to at least to compete for playing time they both had rookie years they both learned a lot learned a lot by watching um AB got some runs showed some promise now it’s about okay let’s let’s let let’s give him a defined role let’s give him those Markel fultz minutes like literally he’s replacing Markel fultz someone someone earlier asked what’s Markel fultz gonna get it sounds like he’s gonna get the non-t taxpayer mle which is about $5 million so he’s probably looking at maybe a two-year 11 or just straight up one year five or one year six to kind of prove that he’s healthy uh and get some playing time it does does feel like there is a little bit of a market for him but again we’re going to watch some of these big big money guys go first before we get to some of the smaller players on the market um but the magic should absolutely be invested in Anthony black if anything if Orlando is hesitant to go after a point guard it’s probably either a they don’t like the point guards available or B they really think Anthony Black’s about to make a good sophomore leap or they think Anthony black is going to be someone that can help fill that Gap and fill that role for this team um I think that is very very possible I loved what Anthony black did last year I thought that Anthony black deserved more looks than he did last year there were definitely stretches where he was better than Markel folz and Markel folz just has trust he’s a veteran he knows what he’s doing Anthony AB had a had his worst game in the worst spot um he played that game against the Knicks that humongous game back in February that we all thought was like okay this is you know we’re playing New York and Indiana on back-to-back games this is a playoff test and we we hyped it up as such and they didn’t perform and I remember watching that game and Jaylen Brunson was just going to town on Anthony black and he looked scared like he looked like a rookie for the first time all year and I think he lost a lot of trust with the coaching staff after that um fair or not I think they were like he’s not ready we can’t depend on him in these big moments to step in in these big moments now if I have a criticism for Jamal Mosley I don’t have much criticism for Jamal Mosley last year but if I have a criticism for him I do think he should have been doing more to prep the team for the playoffs and by that I mean play Anthony black occasionally give you know every five games he gets to play Marco F’s minutes give him that look just just just kind of dip his toes in the water a little bit just keep him fresh keep him motivated same thing with goab baz Mo Vagner those players were not options in the playoffs because we hadn’t seen either of them since February and so I think planning that out a little bit especially if the match have the kind of depth that we’re hoping they’re going to have this year where like all 12 players should play um you know again rookies and young players you know ex you know getting extra leeway on that um we got to see these guys play um because they’re they’re big parts of this team future I absolutely agree that Anthony black should get um should get uh an opportunity here’s a good one Daniel mortensson asking what do you make of wel Park’s consistent Praise of jet Howard uh this is definitely something that I have noted too um that they’re really high on jet Howard I don’t know if this is them just pumping his ego and saying like look he had a great rookie year like this is them spinning his rookie year and saying look he had a great rookie year he’s looking really good in his workouts he did everything we asked him to do in the G League you know I think some of it is spin to say like hey we didn’t waste a draft we didn’t waste a lottery pick last year he did everything we asked him to um but this is this is not a uh thing that the magic typically do I don’t think the magic usually pump up guys like this um I do think they think jet made some big strides last year and the stats were okay not great in the G league but he you know he played well he got his shots up um and again big thing for me the magic can’t be 29th and three-point field goal attempts per game next year they’ve got to take War Theses I don’t care if they necessarily make a better percentage of Threes they should but um they’re 24th in percentage 15th after the All-Star break but uh after uh January 1 but um they’ve got to take more threes and so how to me like you heard of the guys I’m talking about for that bench roll Gary Trent Jr Buddy heel you know Klay Thompson reason I love Klay Thompson is like give me a guy that’s gonna take 10 threes you know Klay Thompson took I think it was 34 games of 10 three-point attempts or more last year the magic had 11 total of players who took 10 or more threes in a game um they need volume Shooters they need guys who are going to be constant threats from three and so if jet Howard is that and the magic drafted jet Howard to be that um we need to see if he can do that um will he get the opportunity to take 10 threes a game probably not but he’s gonna be out there to shoot like that’s what they want and and like honestly Anthony black is a big story in summer league jet Howard is a huge story in summer league I I am you know I don’t know if this is just spin from the Magic’s part and to say like hey we’ve got a rookie coming in his name is jet Howard because he didn’t play for us a ton last year um but it is definitely definitely notable that the magic are really talking up jet Howard um I I do think that is that that is definitely a a thing here J slim here asking hey Phil what is the chance to Magic trade wend Carter I addressed this a little bit earlier but I’ll repeat it here as well um if the magic make a trade Wendell Carter is the trade um that is that is the most tradable asset on the roster um and so I think that is that is that is a thing that that is that is a thing um I don’t think it’s necessarily 5050 um if the magic strike out on Paul George I think they go to Isaiah hartstein next or kavus skell Pope next if they get arenstein that means Carter is probably gone um so again I don’t know what that that that means um Jeffrey cousins with a really good question to ask here because it’s the nitty-gritty stuff that we all care about will M McClung ever wear in Orlando Magic Jersey do you think his defense has improved in the G League um nck mclung should be on an NBA roster um at the very least he should be on a two-way Rost two-way spot uh and magic right now have all three of their two-way spots open trevelin Queen is a restricted free agent I suspect he will be back on a two-way deal um if not taking one of those last roster spots on the team uh if it were me I would give m mclung one of those two-way two-way spots um this wasn’t a fantastic rookie class he was really good for Oola I think just to keep him on Oola and to help Oola out giving him that little bit of extra money would help again like point guard we’re talking about he really improved his point guard skills more than his defense he really improved his point guard skills that was super impressive to me uh that was super impressive to me uh as well and so I think Mong really made some strides this year was really impressive his three-point shots come such a long way uh he’s really improved his skills um he to me to me he should be a two-way guy at a minimum on a on an NBA roster at most like he is someone like you know Trevor and queen like that dude is a fringe NBA player like he he should be he should be prettyy close to graduating off his two-way contract he just needs opportunity maybe he won’t get that here in Orlando but Mt mclung is like a a right there with him like I I think he’s a really player I don’t know if he’ll be on a magic uniform I don’t know what his plans are um I would like to see him I would like to see him get a two-way spot um get rewarded for his good season with a twoa spot get an opportunity to get a look with this team and see uh what happens there so that’s just something to consider as well here is a good question a cap question Garrett Scott Haywood asks philli help me understand how will we afford fron and Jaylen next summer if we sign a big fish this summer so this is a cap mechanism um you know he’s probably you’re looking at tyres Maxi is the like the clearest example of this but essentially under the salary cap there the salary cap is a soft cap which means you’re allowed to go over the cap so long as that you’re using an exception one of the except ctions is called bird rights the bird rights exception allows you to resign your own free agents so if so you can you can always resign your own free unless you’re hard capped you can always resign your own free agents to anything to no matter what you can always resign your own free agents and bring them back now you’re always responsible for the luxury tax payments or any consequence of bringing those players back but you’re not restricted from resigning your own players so regardless of any regardless of anything else the magic can always resign fron Vagner and Jaylen sucks because they are they’re under contract for more than three years uh and so they have full bird rights now there are some technical things to this as well um there’s a thing called early bird rights if you have a player under contract for two years you can resign them to I believe it’s 175% of their previous salary this is why the Knicks can’t bring back Isaiah hartenstein Isaiah hartstein signed a two-year deal with the Knicks they’ve only had them for two years so they only have early bird right um that would put them at seven I think it’s 17 a half million dollars that they can resign him and and go over the cap if they sign him to 18 they need they need cap room to sign him they can’t they can’t just say oh well we have 17 and a half early early bird now we have five million no it doesn’t work like that um so that’s why Haren Stein’s gone that’s why the Knicks can’t bring him back they don’t have the cap they don’t have the cap exception to go over the cap to bring him back uh and so the magic you can always resign your own players the reason why why a lot of us are saying the magic will wait till next summer to bring them back even if they bring in some big fish is because in order to resign players you have to hold have what’s called a cap hold essentially the NBA says well if you’re going to go over the cap to resign your own player you have to pretend for cap purposes that they are under contract for I think it’s 110% of their previous salary or something like that or for in their case like 200% not 200% like 110% or whatever it is um you can’t have a situation and this did happen for a while you can’t have a situation where a player is coming off of a second round contract this happened with Manu jobi I believe Manu jobi signed a second round contract deal came off that deal and the spur said oh great we have his bird rights let’s go sign a big free agent and then give manob a max deal the N didn’t want that anymore so they said okay yeah if you’re going to resign your own free agents you have to put on your books this Pretend This placeholder figure of 110% of their salary so this is important because with Jaylen sugs jayen Suggs is probably G to get paid $35 million or 30 you know like I said 28 to $33 million next year his cap hold is only for 23 million so essentially if the magic sign him today to a new contract they’d be throwing away $15 million of Capa room that could be really valuable fron Vagner is the same deal he’s going to be paid $38 million next probably next year at Le you know 38 is his max his cap hold I believe is 32 so you know $6 million difference may not be a ton um but essentially this is why you wait this is why the Sixers wait with Tyrese Maxi if they signed excuse me if they signed Tyrese Maxi to a max deal um they would not be able to go after Paul George they’re only able to go after Paul George because Tyrese Maxi sign agreed to a deal and none of these deals are signed yet they they’re not official till July 7th um so the order you sign them in matters too it’s a c it’s a c it’s a weird cap mechanic um but essentially tyres Maxi signed a deal that is going to pay him starting at $35 million his cap hold is only like 18 so Philadelphia is only right now counting tyres Maxi for like 178 million but they’re going to sign in for double that that’s why you wait that’s why you you you you keep your cap room you keep that flexibility because you can always go over the cap to sign your players as long as that cap hold exists on your books when you sign other players when you fit them into your cap you can always use bird rights as an exception and the magic hold bird rights on all of those players I hope that clears that up I think that’s uh you know that is something confusing and the salary cap is only getting more confusing right now because there’s new rules under the new CBA um the apron rules are very confusing we will get to those in due time the magic are not worried about apron rules right now but we will get to those in due time okay let’s uh see what other questions we have um here’s a good here’s a good one one of the trade options pal and LaVine both Seattle guys worked out this summer I’m scared of his contract but the ma but are the magic front office look the magic appear at least by some reports appear willing to offer fouryear deal to Paul George I am very skeptical of that I don’t think um I don’t think uh the magic would go with that sack leavine deal um to me that is the desperate move that is the move of we need to do something we need to be contenders we need to take this risk I don’t think the magic are on the risk-taking business right now um maybe they need to be maybe they need to be a little bit more adventurous maybe they need to be a little bit more uh aggressive but I do think I don’t think that’s the aggression the magic want to take I’m like I think they should be more aggressive than cavius calwell Pope but I don’t think they should be Zack LaVine aggressive because to me that’s desperate to me that that reaks of desperation now Zack line would help the team don’t get me wrong when he is healthy he is an excellent three-point shooter uh I think he can’t he’s shown that he can be a good Defender and be part of good defensive teams uh the health is just a major issue and that contract is only going to get worse um that contract will be less onerous as um as the cap increases but uh that is a bad contract um you know that is that is not a contract I would touch uh Phil what are your thoughts on Suggs at point guard um I don’t love it I I I don’t think he’s there um I think he can get there and again I think ultimately with the magic and vision is Jaylen Suggs is Drew holiday they just need to find Derek white um Drew holiday is more of a point guard than Jaylen Suggs is but um but I think it’s still worth trying I think they want Jaylen Suggs to have point guard abilities I still think they need like a a true point guard who’s comfortable in the role to settle them down and to to to Really you know be a point guard like think they need a point guard sorry my the sun is coming right in from from my window here it’s that that that time um it it I’m skeptical of it to be perfectly honest just just me I am very skeptical of it um but it is still something I want to explore I don’t want to close the door on it but I want Security on that spot because it was just such a clear need in the playoffs how much the magic needed a point guard they needed another Creator they need another driver and you know suggs’s driving is what it was his freshman his rookie year his rookie year he averaged like nine drives per game According to second Spectrum this year he was at five or six four or five something like that um his it felt like it felt like the magic and I really appreciate this about I think this was a good decision by them they really rained in his excesses from his rookie year so he wasn’t driving as much or he wasn’t he was more selective about when he attacked now we need to like loosen those reins again and let him drive a little bit more and let him get to get downhill and get to the basket and I think that’s really the big that we’re missing uh from him uh really missing from from what the magic are trying to do here and guess what Jeff zilet coming through with us uh coming through with us with some news right at the end of the show cavius cwell Pope leaving the Denver Nuggets and heading to the Orlando Magic is that a fake Jeff silate no it isn’t okay good our friend Jeff silate of USA Today reporting cavius called Pope is leaving the Denver Nuggets and headed to the Orlando Magic on a threeyear deal I am told um Mr suggested magic are not talking to Paul George or have done talk talk to Paul George but inavi is callwell Pope excellent three-point shooter uh excellent Defender like we’ve kind of said he is a uh Gary Harris plus like he is a bigger Gary Harris he is a better shooter than Gary Harris he’s a better Defender than Gary Harris he is someone that um he is someone that uh will enhance this team what what they were doing last year he will make that better um we don’t have the details of the contract yet a three-year deal I would suspect if it’s a three-year deal it is not for that 25 sorry it is not for that $25 million um that we tal 25 million or that two-year 50 that we were talking about my bet is that this is a little bit more reasonable maybe on the $18 million range maybe 19 maybe three for 60 um I would bet that there are non that there’s a non- guarantee on that thiry that third year is an option option deal but uh this is kind of the move we all expected very Baseline move very much a um very much a guy that enhances what the magic did last year gives them a better version of what they had last year without changing too much um I’m a big believer in the horse Grant Theory uh having a guy who’s been on championship teams that has been on very good teams in the past imparts wisdom to those young teams um I think that’s really really valuable for for young teams especially uh so I am not at all shocked that this is what the magic ultimately did I’m not shocked that this is where the magic start I think that I I think that this is again a relatively safe move on the Magic’s part um but uh but I think this does make the team better I think this does make the team appreciably better uh someone asking kcp backup or starter next year not that one sorry um this one uh kcp is going to start you know you don’t sign a guy at a $20 million contract or whatever the case may be I if I were predicting I don’t have the numbers yet if I were predicting it would be three for 60 um or three for 61 62 give him a little extra money somewhere but um my bet my bet is that is is that he’s coming in around $20 million again just good trade Ballance too in the future but I’d bet there’s a team option or non- guarantee on that third year if I if I were guessing um and he’s gonna start like like he he would he’s going to he started for the Nuggets he is an excellent Defender excellent really good three-point shooter maybe not the greatest not like a standout spot up shooter you know spot up shooting is about the same as Gary Harris he is a better version of Gary Harris he will stay healthy uh he’s been on championship teams he he’s a much more aggressive and physical Defender um so so on that front he is a better option than uh he is a better option than Gary Harris so the magic do get better here with cavius calwell Pope I I 100% believe this um the question now is what comes next um and here’s the number actually uh we actually get the number now three years 60 sorry let add that to Stage uh we actually get the number now three years $66 million deal so that’s $22 million straight um starting shooting guard uh sham Str with the number here three years $66 million uh again Rel I I think this is a fair price like I said I didn’t think they were gonna get the two for 50 um I think that this is a a good spot this this does make Jaylen sugs to starting point guard as many of you are predicting um whether this means the magic are done whether this means the magic will do more uh is certainly a fair question um you know again a lot of people asking here what do you think this meets to Magic’s plans for the rest of free agency do we turn to hartenstein so here’s where let’s do some math magic paying $22 million for cavius col pop if they have about $50 million in cap room that means they have $38 million left that would be enough to go after Isaiah hartenstein so if that is the plan they can still offer that two for 50 or three for another three for 66 why not um they can still offer that deal for isaah hardenstein so by again my big thing my my thought when the magic were supposedly chasing um Paul George was that I don’t think that the magic should throw their money at one guy they need multiple players they need multiple high-end players um so I didn’t think they should throw their money at one guy at like Paul George um but I think that I think that now you know you can go after multiple players so maybe hartstein still a play again like I’ve kind of mentioned I I’m looking for some Wing help too I think Gary Trent Jr would be played so you have 38 let roughly let’s estimate $38 million in cap room left you could go spend 25 of that on uh Isaiah hearten shine if you want and then you’ve got 13 left to spend on someone else so there is still a lot to get to here now I think that this is a fair criticism Blake bicker staff saying only made 1.63 points pointers per game last year I don’t get this um and this was my concern too so cavius cwell Pope essentially and I did a podcast on this last week um you know that I did a podcast on this last week in fact let’s uh let’s play that game I can’t okay uh We’re not gonna play that game today um uh I did a podcast on that last week I’m actually gonna pull it up for you here uh you can go here uh let’s find it where’ you go where’d you go where’d you go uh sorry I’m I’m I’m I’m promoting myself here uh where are you case for cavius calwell Pope I know you’re right here somewhere I don’t know where you went uh I know I did it there’s the case for yes Paul George whatever it’s it’s somewhere it’s it’s somewhere in my archiv sorry um I don’t mean to waste time here uh but um yes he only made at 1.6 thre pointers per game last year um and my concern with that is that he the Nugget so the magic were 29 in the league in three-point attempts per game last year the Nuggets were 30th um that’s the that that was my biggest issue with kavus scell pop his stats they won’t directly translate to the magic because they have Nicole yic um one of my concerns is that kcp wouldn’t give the magic the shot volume that they’re that they’re that they probably need from the position and and what and again what I think they need is the shot volume so I share some of your skepticism but at the very least kcp is a better version of Gary Harris um Gary Harris was F you know I am a notable Gary Harris Defender I am a notable let’s try this actually I am a notable Gary Harris Defender um I think that sorry uh I think that Gary Harris got a bad rap from fans he’s kind of the the scapegoat in a lot of ways um he did what was asked him um and I would always argue that you need to get him more shots because if he’s getting the ball that usually means The Magik or moving the ball well kcp has the same issue and and that would always be my concern with bringing in a guy like kcp and bringing in a player like cavius calwell Pope um and third year player option for for Caldwell Pope per Shams let’s add him to the stage there third year player option for calwell Pope per Shams so very honestly very player friendly deal at that point um but I kyp like look at the end of the day the goal is to get better um you know did the magic get significantly better here no I would I would agree with that uh I don’t think that they got like 100 % better with this move did they get better today though did they get better adding cavius calwell Pope absolutely they did absolutely they got better with kavus call hope he has a better version of Gary Harris he’s gonna make he fits defensively he fits their needs offensively they absolutely got better today with this uh so the magic do only have 28 million sorry I I I didn’t math well they have 28 million a cap room they’re out on Paul George Klay Thompson they’re probably they’ve probably been eliminated from that a while ago anyway um so you know the magic did their thing you know they they did their thing uh Clifford rapael asking what about Lonnie Walker I would like him as an end bench guy as well I think that’s that’s a good option I think he fits with the magic want to do um but again that’s an end of summer guy you know we’ll we’ll get to we’ll get to that as well okay taking minutes away from abjet um I don’t think so um you know honestly so the Saturday fight says uh is he taking minutes away from uh ab and Jet uh to me that answer is no um to me that answer is uh to me that answer is no because AB is playing Marquel foltz’s minutes jet Howard is essentially going to be playing Caleb Houston’s minutes you hope or or kind of sliding in there uh Casey p is playing Gary Harris’s minutes um and you’ll probably get a little bit more so yes they will take a little bit little bit of time from them but um Casey kcp is is gonna he’s gonna help like the team the team got better like you know is it the giant step forward no um but the team got better today for sure I I I absolutely absolutely believe that and you know again he’s been in the playoffs he’s been a champion he’s a two-time NBA champion 2020 with the Lakers 2023 with the Nuggets he absolutely makes this team better so I I do really I I like this signing um again it’s not the it’s not the like runaway home run signing this is like you know we’re we’re we’re getting on base you know getting singles and doubles here um he does make this team better they’re going to look very similar to what they look like last year though um that’s that’s that’s that’s where the magic at again they have $28 million of cap room left to spend um that’s that’s going to be that’s gonna be a boost for this team so I like what the magic did here um I I like that I like I like the signing uh overall we’ll we’ll dive more into the signing tomorrow um so we’ll dive more into the signing on tomorrow’s episode of lockon magic uh I I I have a Tristan D Silva interview in my back pocket as well but yes I am you could kind of tell I’m I’m running out of steam a little bit here it’s been two hours of of live broadcasting um Andrew canable 100% means sugs at point I absolutely agree with this um you know again this is kind of the big question the magic are not addressing that point guard role in a meaningful way um one of my drawbacks on kavus cwell Pope is certainly that he is not a playmaker um he’s a good decisionmaker like he will make good decisions he’s not going to hurt you on that front but he’s not a playmaker he is going to be a spot-up shooter he’s actually a pretty good pull-up shooter too um uh but he is he is going to make this team better significantly so the magic clearly believe jayen sugs can develop his point guard skills to the level that they need him to uh and and that I think is ultimately a good thing for for the Orlando Magic so uh we did get a signing in we did get that that in before we shut down um and and I’m glad that we did uh as well uh so you know we’ve gone two hours here um for for us um I will take last questions here in a minute uh in a minute but um I want to thank everyone who joined us here for this live look sorry I’m responding to the comments um uh kcp signing does not mean there’s room left for Paul George magic have now you know three years $66 million assuming it’s flat that’s $22 million magic had about $50 million a CO room magic only have 28 million left Paul George is looking for 50 so magic are off the board for Paul George um Gary Harris is still not under contract Gary Harris is a free agent so they’re not worried about that a junr saying your thumbnail is ominous now I think we all kind of saw that that was the direction the team was going I tried to I tried to be predictive and when all the Paul George stuff came out yesterday I was like I need to change my thumbnail to Paul George to be a little more enticing but now we know that what the magic are doing now we know who the magic have signed so we’ll dive a lot more into cavius callwell Pope what he brings to the Lando Magic on tomorrow’s episode of lockdown magic uh as well I want to make sure I I hit questions here and Catch My Breath a little bit um essent like kind of people are talking about this um this is this is kind of the magic standing Pat um you know Orlando Adams this has been a criticism of the Orlando Magic and Jeff welman if we’re okay with standing Pat then we should have just resigned our guys to cheaper contracts and keep the great team chemistry that is true but here’s the other problem Orlando um teams are require to spend 90% of the cap um this year uh and if you don’t spend 90% of the cap by opening day um if if you don’t if you don’t put don’t spend 90% of the cap by by the beginning of the regular season then um you don’t get the luxury tax payments so you don’t so all the luxury tax payments are split between the non-t tax paying teams um so you don’t get the luxury tax payments and you get a cap hold for the difference to get you to 90% uh so they had to spend money like they needed to spend and Gary Harris like again at the end of the day did the magic get better today like this is the question did the magic do the biggest thing no but did the magic get better today I don’t I I may have my question about cavius cwell Pope for the big picture but yes the magic got better today the magic 100% got better today and if that’s the biggest takeaway that you can make from all this I have questions I have all of that the magic got better today gavius cwell Pope is a better version of Gary Harris at minimum uh he is he is an excellent Defender a much more physical and bigger Defender than Gary Harris he is as good if not better of a shooter than Gary Harris he’s been on championship teams before you know this this is this is a good signing for Orlando this is a good player um this is this is a the magic got better today at the end of the day that’s that’s the question you got to ask and I think they did now there weren’t a lot of opportunities in free agency I’ve been joking with people all day that if the magic sign if the magic didn’t get Paul GE whoever didn’t get Paul George between the Sixers and the magic the loser was going to get gavius cell pop that’s the drop off and so yeah if you expected magic at Paul George today’s disappointing because kavus callwell Pope is not Paul George but the magic did get better today the question now is what comes next so I assume the magic are you know they’ve taken care of gavius callwell Pope hopefully they’re on the next flight to Eugene Oregon to meet with Isaiah hartenstein um that would be the next big move the magic have about $28 million of cap room left to spend will the question is will they spend it on one big player like Isaiah hartenstein or will they spend it on several players will they look to add some depth they bolster their bench a little bit um that’s that’s the next question for the Orlando Magic that’s the next question that this team faces um he’s going to help I I I want to I want to I I want to make that clear like he is going to make this team better um and again is he going to dramatically make this team better probably not you know know there he doesn’t solve the big problems on this team but the magic still won 47 games last year like I like yes there are issues the team needs to resolve and kcp helps a little bit with the shooting issue um not the volume issue but the shooting issue but he does make this team better I I want that to be abundantly clear so we’ll see what the magic end up doing next we’ll see uh where the magic go from here um there is there is definitely a lot to go and look he’s he’s a healthier he’s healthier too I think that’s that’s the part I forgot to mention thank you Shannon Thomas for mentioning that he is healthier than Harris he does all the things Harris does but does it better so if you’re looking to straight upgrade of a position the magic won 47 games last year it’s it’s not like they were a failure last season um ultimately the end goal is poo banero has to be better like if poo vanro gets better France Vagner get rebounds with his shooting Jaylen Sugg is Contin Improvement that’s going to be that’s going to help the match get a lot better too and so yes you know is this the most exciting signing in the world no but kcp makes this team better and and it’s gonna be really excit you know I’ll be really excited to see him play this year and I think that he will help this team out a ton a ton for you know I think he will help this team out a lot um you know it’s it’s it doesn’t solve the big issues so I I get that um I get that it doesn’t solve the big issues the point guard the playmaking the setting things up he helps with shooting I think he has gravity as a shooter um but you know it it he helps he helps doesn’t solve big issues but he does help and does help this team improve um so you know there is still obviously a lot more work to do for the Orlando Magic they are not done but this is this is the big signing for um this is the this is the big signing for the Orlando Magic uh or this is the first signing for the orl magic at least for for this team and so a lot to to break down here over the next um next thing and and as several people are mentioning like kcp was was on all defensive team ballots let me see if I can pull those up here NBA all defensive team voting let me see if I could pull that up uh here we go um let’s see here voting all defensive team all defensive team here we go so ke this is this is another really important point then uh cavius Caldwell Pope received 11 all defensive second team votes I want to repeat that like like honestly like let’s let me let me throw this up here let me throw this up here so y’all can see it on on on the stream cavius calwell Pope received 11 all defensive team votes you could see him right here right there so again like I know the magic have a lot of defense and you know some people are mentioning names like magic can still go get tyus Jones if they want Daniel caps if you want tyus Jones they can still sign him he just won’t be a he just won’t be a starter um is a Simon’s deal still still an option it’s still an option he doesn’t have a place to start anymore but yes yes it’s still an option um they have they could go get isaah hardenstein if they want um but KTIV is callwell Pope checks a lot of boxes for the match excellent Defender good three-point shooter good size for for his position selfless player you know you know what he’s going to give you um he’s a better version of Gary Harris like at at at minimum that’s what the magic have is a better version of Gary Harris and so I again is that worth $22 million a year in this environment probably is um you know magic down to about $30 million in cap room now um but you know magic their starting lineup set starting lineup looks pretty good I’m not I’m not going to deny that and and obviously they still have a lot of work to do um yeah so we got our big we got our big signing we got our big news if you made it to the end of the show if you’re listening on uh if you’re listening on replay I appreciate that thanks for getting to two hours and 15 minutes I am very much running out of steam um so I’m gonna wrap up shop here um we will have a lot more on the magic signing cavius CW Pope be sure to follow my socials at Philip rore OMD at omic daily for the latest free agent going on here uh with the orine no magic they’re they’re definitely not done they’ve still got money to spend they’re still going to spend it so uh we will get to all that you can of course follow me on Twitter Philip romd if you haven’t done so already and enjoyed the show check out locked on Magic you subscribe wherever you download podcast as well as check out the YouTube page which you’re watching right now if you’re listening to me uh live as well for the lat on the Orlando Magic be sure to check out orlandomagic.com I’ll break down some thoughts on tavius cwell Pope here in a in a bit too um you can check that out at Orlando magic.com follow us there of course at omic da and for even more Orlando Magic content including my final player grades um you can check out the Orlando Magic Hub patreon.com Orlando Magic Hub as always be sure to check out the lockdown Sports a 247 streaming Channel as well for the latest on Sports around the world from local experts who know their team best okay uh that is all I have for thei for for today you can tell I am running out of steam talking for two hours and 15 minutes is a lot for me um but the Oro magic got better today I think that honestly that’s a big takeaway there are still big questions to ask big questions to see a lot of it still comes from internal development but the orlandoo magic did some good work today or it appears they did some good work today uh and we’ll see how they move forward from here but that is it it for me I am tapping out um I wanted to get all the way to 7 I’m here at 7:45 uh so I appreciate everyone who joined us for this live free agency paloa show I want to thank you all again for listening to today’s episode of lockdown match we’ll be back tomorrow to talk about Kevin cavius calwell Pope and what the signing means I’ll have an episode with locked on Buffs disc discussing Tristan D Silva later on in the week as well um it’s my birthday week it’s a holiday week as well so we’ll have uh we’ll be taking some time as well I may be back here and I may be back with a bonus episode later today as well to talk more about gavius callwell Pope instead of saving that for tomorrow but we’ll see how I feel um thanks again everyone for joining the live stream thanks again for everyone who made it to the end if you’re listening on Replay for Orlando Magic daily and locked on Magic this has been Philip Rossman Reich see you again next time for another episode of Locked on Magic spare no expenses people peace out

The Orlando Magic have a lot of opportunities in free agency this year. They also faced a lot of questions. As the dust settled on day one, the Magic had come away with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and some improvement to their defense and shooting. Those may not have been the most pressing needs, but it solidifies the Magic’s foundation and put to rest some questions facing the team.

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