Official 2025 Offseason Thread

[MartinsIzAfraud]

I think he said we have 8 first round picks and the 5th most second round picks in the league, and those picks are good for tax teams. I'm not sure if he's advocating to trade picks or keep them.

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I think he mentioned 2nd round picks being used to fill roster spots on the cheap. Since they’re not guaranteed deals or expensive you can fill 2 spots for like 2-4M or something.

[GelbeWand09]

Weltman on 96.9 the Game this morning a few tidbits.

Weltman basically said that at the deadline they were only looking at expiring contracts and he didn't want to overpay for a 2-month rental.
He did say he's ready to turn the page and look at this summer as a WIN NOW PHASE.
The dual path is done, and they have to start making moves to push the roster to the next step and actually compete for something.
Nothing can be off the table for us, and we have to use the assets to acquire the next pieces now.
Paolo & Franz are battle tested, really showed a lot during the Boston series.
Did say we're going to have to get better offensively, and it will have to come at the cost of the defensive side but not completely overthrow that.
He's said WIN NOW multiple times.
Draft Capital we're in a strong position and Cap Flexibility we've got to maneuver that properly and again mentioned sacrificing defense for offense. Basically, said swap Offense for Defense has to be our goal this summer


I wouldn't be shocked if we saw Isaac play his last game in an Orlando magic jersey

The whole problem is, every other GM knows that too. The problem is he doesnt made ANY move in years to adress needs, create synergy & balance on the roster. Now he has to make a ton of moves in one offseason + he wasted the cap flexibilty years, which makes it even harder.

[eyriq]

"It's a perspective based on how the rebuilding process works.

1. Teardown (Year 0, for Orlando 2021)
2. Asset accumulation and development (Years 1-2, for Orlando 2022 and 2023)
3. Establishing a competitive core (Year 3-4, for Orlando 2024, 2025)
4. Transition to contention (Years 4-5, for Orlando 2026 and 2027)
5. Sustained success or reassessment (years 6+, for Orlando this starts in 2028)

We are finishing year 4 of our rebuild and are ready to transition to contention, which means valuing win-now moves over future oriented moves going forward."

Edit: yes, I'm quoting myself. This is pretty much the organic rebuild timeline and I think closely represents how Weltman views the team building timeline.

[basketballRob]

He did say we have a lot of holes.

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[MartinsIzAfraud]

Weltman on 96.9 the Game this morning a few tidbits.

Weltman basically said that at the deadline they were only looking at expiring contracts and he didn't want to overpay for a 2-month rental.
He did say he's ready to turn the page and look at this summer as a WIN NOW PHASE.
The dual path is done, and they have to start making moves to push the roster to the next step and actually compete for something.
Nothing can be off the table for us, and we have to use the assets to acquire the next pieces now.
Paolo & Franz are battle tested, really showed a lot during the Boston series.
Did say we're going to have to get better offensively, and it will have to come at the cost of the defensive side but not completely overthrow that.
He's said WIN NOW multiple times.
Draft Capital we're in a strong position and Cap Flexibility we've got to maneuver that properly and again mentioned sacrificing defense for offense. Basically, said swap Offense for Defense has to be our goal this summer


I wouldn't be shocked if we saw Isaac play his last game in an Orlando magic jersey

The whole problem is, every other GM knows that too. The problem is he doesnt made ANY move in years to adress needs, create synergy & balance on the roster. Now he has to make a ton of moves in one offseason + he wasted the cap flexibilty years, which makes it even harder.

It did sound like he's ready to move multiple players and picks to improve this team and there can't just be 1 deal. This team has holes he said without saying that.

Cole, Isaac, Gary, Goga all could be gone via trades, and you probably could add Jett/ into that mix.

[basketballRob]

Wasn't Kuzma an expiring who got an extension from the Bucks? Weltman was dying to tell us how he avoided that mess.

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[89Magicfan]

I’m convinced that P5 and Franz pairing doesn’t work. Ball movement starts to work wonders if one of them is on the bench and one of them is tasked to lead shooters.

That’s why I’m ok with trading P5 for Trae (this will fix our stagnant offense and also our 3 point shooting). I’ll also move on from our coach (Malone and Jenkins are available). The time for contention should be near. Enough of the “development” year. We must follow Pistons / Pacers and actually make winning moves.

Except that isn’t a winning move.

[Redwood]

"It's a perspective based on how the rebuilding process works.

1. Teardown (Year 0, for Orlando 2021)
2. Asset accumulation and development (Years 1-2, for Orlando 2022 and 2023)
3. Establishing a competitive core (Year 3-4, for Orlando 2024, 2025)
4. Transition to contention (Years 4-5, for Orlando 2026 and 2027)
5. Sustained success or reassessment (years 6+, for Orlando this starts in 2028)

We are finishing year 4 of our rebuild and are ready to transition to contention, which means valuing win-now moves over future oriented moves going forward."

Edit: yes, I'm quoting myself. This is pretty much the organic rebuild timeline and I think closely represents how Weltman views the team building timeline.

I'm not sure why you continue pushing this, our rebuild started the day we traded Dwight and that is permanently true. You don't get to keep updating the rebuild date just because nothing we've done has worked. A rebuild is finished the day your franchise becomes a legitimate championship contender and not a day sooner. Your arbitrary, and frankly ridiculous, set of steps here will never change that.

[basketballRob]

My guess is we may package 1 or both 1st round picks and make our 2nd round picks to fill in the roster.

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[eyriq]

"It's a perspective based on how the rebuilding process works.

1. Teardown (Year 0, for Orlando 2021)
2. Asset accumulation and development (Years 1-2, for Orlando 2022 and 2023)
3. Establishing a competitive core (Year 3-4, for Orlando 2024, 2025)
4. Transition to contention (Years 4-5, for Orlando 2026 and 2027)
5. Sustained success or reassessment (years 6+, for Orlando this starts in 2028)

We are finishing year 4 of our rebuild and are ready to transition to contention, which means valuing win-now moves over future oriented moves going forward."

Edit: yes, I'm quoting myself. This is pretty much the organic rebuild timeline and I think closely represents how Weltman views the team building timeline.

I'm not sure why you continue pushing this, our rebuild started the day we traded Dwight and that is permanently true. You don't get to keep updating the rebuild date just because nothing we've done has worked. A rebuild is finished the day your franchise becomes a legitimate championship contender and not a day sooner. Your arbitrary, and frankly ridiculous, set of steps here will never change that.

I get where you're coming from, but anchoring everything to the Dwight trade ignores how rebuilds actually function in practice. Franchises don’t get infinite timelines on a single rebuild. There are discrete phases, and when leadership overhauls the roster and strategy, it's fair to mark that as a new starting point.

The 2021 teardown was a deliberate reset. Vucevic, Gordon, and Fournier were all moved, cap space was cleared, and draft capital was acquired. That’s not a continuation of 2012. It’s a new build entirely. This isn’t about moving goalposts. It’s about recognizing when a team pivots and starts building something new.

Calling everything since Dwight a single rebuild flattens the nuance. It doesn’t reflect how modern teams operate or how this front office has approached team construction.

[Redwood]

"It's a perspective based on how the rebuilding process works.

1. Teardown (Year 0, for Orlando 2021)
2. Asset accumulation and development (Years 1-2, for Orlando 2022 and 2023)
3. Establishing a competitive core (Year 3-4, for Orlando 2024, 2025)
4. Transition to contention (Years 4-5, for Orlando 2026 and 2027)
5. Sustained success or reassessment (years 6+, for Orlando this starts in 2028)

We are finishing year 4 of our rebuild and are ready to transition to contention, which means valuing win-now moves over future oriented moves going forward."

Edit: yes, I'm quoting myself. This is pretty much the organic rebuild timeline and I think closely represents how Weltman views the team building timeline.

I'm not sure why you continue pushing this, our rebuild started the day we traded Dwight and that is permanently true. You don't get to keep updating the rebuild date just because nothing we've done has worked. A rebuild is finished the day your franchise becomes a legitimate championship contender and not a day sooner. Your arbitrary, and frankly ridiculous, set of steps here will never change that.

I get where you're coming from, but anchoring everything to the Dwight trade ignores how rebuilds actually function in practice. Franchises don’t get infinite timelines on a single rebuild. There are discrete phases, and when leadership overhauls the roster and strategy, it's fair to mark that as a new starting point.

The 2021 teardown was a deliberate reset. Vucevic, Gordon, and Fournier were all moved, cap space was cleared, and draft capital was acquired. That’s not a continuation of 2012. It’s a new build entirely. This isn’t about moving goalposts. It’s about recognizing when a team pivots and starts building something new.

Calling everything since Dwight a single rebuild flattens the nuance. It doesn’t reflect how modern teams operate or how this front office has approached team construction.

I don't care how this front office has approached anything, they assembled one of the worst offensive teams the league has ever seen. Their vision is clearly, and fundamentally, clouded.

We may have changed course in 2021, but that doesn't change the rebuild start date. I can tie it to the Dwight years very easily because that's the last Orlando team that was a true championship contending roster. Can you say that about 2020, 19, 18? Of course not. The only purpose of this sport is to win a championship, you build your roster for that purpose and that purpose alone. If you fail in that endeavor, and we have, then you keep trying until you get it right. New players doesn't mean a new rebuild, all it means is the rebuild is going poorly.

This franchise has not been REBUILT into the championship contender it was during the Dwight era. Until (if) that happens, the rebuild is ongoing. To say otherwise is to saw we were contenders in the years just prior to 2021 and that, very obviously, is not true.

[OrlandoDream]

Weltman on 96.9 the Game this morning a few tidbits.

Weltman basically said that at the deadline they were only looking at expiring contracts and he didn't want to overpay for a 2-month rental.
He did say he's ready to turn the page and look at this summer as a WIN NOW PHASE.
The dual path is done, and they have to start making moves to push the roster to the next step and actually compete for something.
Nothing can be off the table for us, and we have to use the assets to acquire the next pieces now.
Paolo & Franz are battle tested, really showed a lot during the Boston series.
Did say we're going to have to get better offensively, and it will have to come at the cost of the defensive side but not completely overthrow that.
He's said WIN NOW multiple times.
Draft Capital we're in a strong position and Cap Flexibility we've got to maneuver that properly and again mentioned sacrificing defense for offense. Basically, said swap Offense for Defense has to be our goal this summer


I wouldn't be shocked if we saw Isaac play his last game in an Orlando magic jersey

The whole problem is, every other GM knows that too. The problem is he doesnt made ANY move in years to adress needs, create synergy & balance on the roster. Now he has to make a ton of moves in one offseason + he wasted the cap flexibilty years, which makes it even harder.

NBA doesn't work like that. There are going to be multiple teams this offseason who will be sellers. If one tries to "squeeze" like Utah which they will, we will go to another target. There will be plenty of options for us to acquire more offensive talent.

With that, I expect the contracts of Dell, Isaac, Cole, and Goga to be used as trade bait. They were structured in way to make them tradeable. That with picks and maybe one of 2/3 Jett, TDS and AB will attract some interest.

[eyriq]

I'm not sure why you continue pushing this, our rebuild started the day we traded Dwight and that is permanently true. You don't get to keep updating the rebuild date just because nothing we've done has worked. A rebuild is finished the day your franchise becomes a legitimate championship contender and not a day sooner. Your arbitrary, and frankly ridiculous, set of steps here will never change that.

I get where you're coming from, but anchoring everything to the Dwight trade ignores how rebuilds actually function in practice. Franchises don’t get infinite timelines on a single rebuild. There are discrete phases, and when leadership overhauls the roster and strategy, it's fair to mark that as a new starting point.

The 2021 teardown was a deliberate reset. Vucevic, Gordon, and Fournier were all moved, cap space was cleared, and draft capital was acquired. That’s not a continuation of 2012. It’s a new build entirely. This isn’t about moving goalposts. It’s about recognizing when a team pivots and starts building something new.

Calling everything since Dwight a single rebuild flattens the nuance. It doesn’t reflect how modern teams operate or how this front office has approached team construction.

I don't care how this front office has approached anything, they assembled one of the worst offensive teams the league has ever seen. Their vision is clearly, and fundamentally, clouded.

We may have changed course in 2021, but that doesn't change the rebuild start date. I can tie it to the Dwight years very easily because that's the last Orlando team that was a true championship contending roster. Can you say that about 2020, 19, 18? Of course not. The only purpose of this sport is to win a championship, you build your roster for that purpose and that purpose alone. If you fail in that endeavor, and we have, then you keep trying until you get it right. New players doesn't mean a new rebuild, all it means is the rebuild is going poorly.

This franchise has not been REBUILT into the championship contender it was during the Dwight era. Until (if) that happens, the rebuild is ongoing. To say otherwise is to saw we were contenders in the years just prior to 2021 and that, very obviously, is not true.

You're arguing from emotion, not structure. No one is calling the 2018–2020 teams contenders, and no one is denying the Dwight era was the last real peak. But the claim that the rebuild never restarted is analytically lazy. Franchises are not static. Rebuilds aren’t one continuous process stretching across a decade because you didn’t like the outcome. They restart when leadership, roster, and direction are fundamentally overhauled, and that’s exactly what happened in 2021.

If you want to hold the front office accountable, fine. But do it on the actual timeline they’ve operated under. Judging the current build against decisions made by entirely different regimes clouds your own argument.

You don’t have to like the progress, but pretending there’s been no reset just avoids engaging with how team-building actually works.

[VFX]

There is something to be said about having 2.5 max guys while having one of the worst offenses in the league with those two guys leading your team.

It basically means Weltman failed in 4 seasons to acquire a supporting cast of players that makes sense next to them.

Any idiot could have told you Isaac, Cole, KCP, and Carter were not the guys to pay to “round out” the roster.

Paolo and Franz need shooting, rebounding, and back court playmaking. None of those players provide that.

Weltman just wanted to pay them instead of making decisions because they were here first, or weren’t being bid on by others (KCP).

To argue that this is NOW the step in the process that they need to start doing things is idiotic. That’s not how GMs should operate. They should be finding the best ways of optimizing a roster at all times. It isn’t a 2 month long job waiting for ping pong balls four seasons in a row.

[eyriq]

There is something to be said about having 2.5 max guys while having one of the worst offenses in the league with those two guys leading your team.

It basically means Weltman failed in 4 seasons to acquire a supporting cast of players that makes sense next to them.

Any idiot could have told you Isaac, Cole, KCP, and Carter were not the guys to pay to “round out” the roster. Paolo and Franz need shooting and back court playmaking. None of those players provide that.

Weltman just wanted to pay them instead of making decisions because they were here first, or weren’t being bid on by others (KCP).

This is premature.

[VFX]

There is something to be said about having 2.5 max guys while having one of the worst offenses in the league with those two guys leading your team.

It basically means Weltman failed in 4 seasons to acquire a supporting cast of players that makes sense next to them.

Any idiot could have told you Isaac, Cole, KCP, and Carter were not the guys to pay to “round out” the roster. Paolo and Franz need shooting and back court playmaking. None of those players provide that.

Weltman just wanted to pay them instead of making decisions because they were here first, or weren’t being bid on by others (KCP).

This is premature.

No.

You just can’t handle the idea that GMs need to be working all the time to optimize rosters on the fringes. You think there is some concrete made up timeframe when GMs need to be working.

You don’t just randomly arrive at a second apron team with the worst supporting cast in the league with a bottom 3 offense.

I’d call you an idiot but I don’t think that’s necessarily true because you have formed intelligent arguments before. I think you are just naive.

[JoshuaPotter]

Shots fired.

The last season was compounded by the fact that our 3 / 4 scorers and I mean best scorers by a mile were injured. After them, the only person on the roster that can create is Black followed by Cole.

The fact that it took a savy corpse of a PG to salvage our record says all I want to know about the leaderships commitment to putting the right players around Franz + Paolo.

They gambled on Fultz like a drunkard in a high stakes casino when it was clear he wasn't the answer. Then they draft AB / Jett with potentially better fit options on the board. This is put simply, a mess.

I love AB and after Franz I consider his ceiling the highest still. Suggs coming back should be instant offense on our team and he will open up the lanes a lot more. Same with Mo.

But it just can't be helped, that we put no true offensive depth after the 5th option. People who can't even catch and shoot reliably. Let that sink in.

KCP defense was as advertised. Yet his offense imploded. For the price, we should have marched Gary friggin Harris in the starting lineup.

[Magic_Johnny12]

Ehh, it’s good to hear this from Weltman but this echoes desperation than actually something of substance that has been the plan all along.

Let me remind everyone Weltman only has one full season left on his contract and we have seen this same story one too many times in this league and would proceed with caution.

GM makes panic move to try to keep his job and still is inevitably let go after putting their franchise in even worst shape.

I genuinely hope this isn’t the case, but Orlando is going from one of the least expensive teams in the league to top-5 most expensive factoring in Paolos max. Our flexibility is gone and the time to execute was BEFORE Franz/Paolos got their well deserved maxes.

We’re seeing it with San Antonio, you build while your star player is on his rookie scale. Any real GM poster could have told you this.

The issue is him just now realizing we have TWO actual building blocks, this was an obvious observation from the very beginning and he was way too risk adverse to react sooner.

Again, happy that we’re finally deciding to turn the page but I’m a little concerned of the timing of it all but pressure makes diamonds so we’ll finally get to see what Weltman actually gets paid to do.

[basketballRob]

I'm pretty sure Weltman said we need players who can play defense in the playoffs. Cole and Goga proved they couldn't.

Goga, Cole, and the 16th pick for Cam Johnson. Draft Clayton or Wolf with the 25th pick.

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[MartinsIzAfraud]

Ehh, it’s good to hear this from Weltman but this echoes desperation than actually something of substance that has been the plan all along.

Let me remind everyone Weltman only has one full season left on his contract and we have seen this same story one too many times in this league and would proceed with caution.

GM makes panic move to try to keep his job and still is inevitably let go after putting their franchise in even worst shape.

I genuinely hope this isn’t the case, but Orlando is going from one of the least expensive teams in the league to top-5 most expensive factoring in Paolos max. Our flexibility is gone and the time to execute was BEFORE Franz/Paolos got their well deserved maxes.

We’re seeing it with San Antonio, you build while your star player is on his rookie scale. Any real GM poster could have told you this.

The issue is him just now realizing we have TWO actual building blocks, this was an obvious observation from the very beginning and he was way too risk adverse to react sooner.

Again, happy that we’re finally deciding to turn the page but I’m a little concerned of the timing of it all but pressure makes diamonds so we’ll finally get to see what Weltman actually gets paid to do.

It will be interesting to see if he gets extended this summer... I'd imagine that comes here quickly.

Waiting till last minute and wasting time on Fultz/Cole was absolutely moronic. After 1.5 years of each with this current roster you knew they weren't anything special and could be replaced easily. Ok you re-sign Cole but after that 1st year where he took a massive dip you move him for another comparable player/piece. There's no way a tanking team or lower-level team wouldn't have been interested in a veteran like Cole for vet who was stuck in a bad spot.

I'm just about ready to change my signature to "Sexton or White or Simons or bigger move please"