Def Swami wrote:ezzzp, I think we agree on what the Magic's "process" is laid out to be in relation to other teams (Nuggets, Raptors), but I think we differ on our belief in the front office to carry this out to success.
While I believe the intent of these franchises are similar, I do not believe the process has yielded the same results for us. I can get on board with Weltman and Hammond trying to stay competitive, build a more fortified infrastructure, create a culture of work, and build off their scouting and smart drafts, trades, and signings. As much as I hate to admit it, I admire a team like the Heat, who are building a deep playoff team with undrafted players like Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson and maximizing their mid-lottery picks like Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. A lot of this probably doesn't come together without Jimmy Butler, which is what I think others are getting at. At some point, you need a top 20 guy in the league to propel a team to relevance. I don't even really care about how you get that player so long as it happens some way (2nd round of the draft vs trade vs lottery pick, etc).
But it's the other stuff (the smart free agency signings, the finding hidden talent to complement a roster, and making smart trade) that other teams like the Raptors, Nuggets, Heat, Pacers do really well that I do not believe the Magic have earned the recognition for. You can argue that these other front offices have longer track records and more years of a resume than Weltman and Hammond, which is fair, and is why I'm open to giving Weltman and Hammond this season to further improve the roster. But, I don't believe they've had any signature moves that ultimately changes the ceiling of this team that those other teams have made. The draft hasn't yielded a player on the level of Jamal Murray or Nikola Jokic with mid-lottery picks or mid-2nd round picks. There hasn't been a G League developmental wonder like Pascal Siakam or Fred Van Vleet.
I don't even really care if the Magic choose to never tank. But, if that's the strategy, they have to capitalize on the draft regardless of where they pick. Isaac is a really good defensive player who floats in and out of offense. The jury is out on Bamba, but has had a rough go of it thus far. Time will tell on Okeke. None of these players are changing the fortunes of the franchise. Again, I can buy that this outlook changes over the course of 1-2 more seasons. The early returns are pretty hazy at the moment.
I know that Hammond and Weltman were part of those franchises and they deserve some credit for that track record. There are a lot of good players acquired during the their tenures there. I just wonder at what point, in an inherently competitive game of talent acquisition, their seats get warm. Unfortunately for them, it's a results based business, regardless of what your process is. I don't know how many teams afford their front offices more than 3 seasons to show some growth before an ownership/fan base gets antsy. 3 seasons is a lot of time for a front office to change the complexion, ceiling, competitiveness of a roster in a substantial way. To this point, I'm quite dubious that they've made the complimentary moves that other franchises have made to bolster their fortunes. And they've certainly been unable to add the game-changing talent that some of the other more competitive front offices have done.
Teams give their FO's at least +4 years to produce "results," as the vast majority of GM contracts are 5 years. BUT how each team defines "results" varies from market to market...and within that "results" varies enormously depending on where team was at start of that FO's tenure.
The Magic hired Jeff Weltman on May 22, 2017. That means that he's had barely 2.5 years to turn around a +6 year tailspin. Weltman walked into a PR disaster with Magic the laughing stock of the NBA. He walked into a roster full of distressed assets with a nightmare cap situation. The DeVos' family knows that.
And as I posted earlier: "When Weltman came in he found a basketball operations program that was bare bones, if present at all. He was building a lot of things from the ground up."
LINKIn that short period, Weltman has already altered composition of franchise enough to get them into playoffs for the first time in 7 years. People will try to downplay that by saying the East was/is weak, but that's been true for years - even during the Dwight years.
In his first summer, Weltman acquired Isaac + assets that became Fultz. That's two of the Magic's highest upside pieces. In his second summer he drafted Bamba + re-signed Gordon to a team friendly contract that will make him a very nice trade asset this summer.
I have way more confidence in the future of Isaac, Fultz, Okeke and Bamba than what you are giving them.
Isaac to me is a player that will be in mix for DPOY throughout his career. That is a fundamental and crucial piece to nearly every contention caliber team. While his offense is still a work in progress, there is a LOT to like at this very early stage.
Fultz, at 21 + having not yet even breached 1400 NBA minutes (aka rookie year minutes), is already a very solid rotation PG. My floor for him is a better scoring Rubio; if he gets to point were he's high volume efficient mid range shooter he'll be a DeRozan type scorer; if his 3pt shot develops he'll be an All-Star level PG.
Bamba to me has physical attributes and skill combination that has potential to be a serious impact level player. We can already see how he alters the floor defensively when he's clicking and how quickly he can rack up points. That's with him in a very early raw stage.
Every forum regular knows I'm very high on Okeke, as I was one of very few defenders of him over NAW.
...for now all we can do is speculate about those player's future without an answer as that's 2-3 years down the road. But I definitely like the direction and how the FO has handled digging out of the hole the organization was in.
