Official Speculation Thread ‘18-19’: XX: Year of the Vuc

[drsd]

At this time one year ago, the Magic were 11-20 and heading for a 25-57 record, miles away from the playoff.

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[Furinkazan]

Lol Nets aint trading Russell unless you give them Isaac propably.
Both Dinwiddie and Russell play well and they got a good rotation.
Its Like our AG situation last year.Nets are in the same situation.
They just cant afford to lose assets like Russ even if it didnt work for them(and it does work)
They aint chosing Dinwiddie over Russ.They simply choose to keep re-sign assets.Its a no brainer.
But I guess nobody can stop us dreaming.

So you believe they want to keep Russel's 20m+ cap hold and not maximize cap space to potentially lose out on bigger FA's because of it?

So you think they match an offer north of 70 million dollars?

It's not as simple as you may think my friend.

bigger fa?:D who?????
Ofc they will match it.
Just watch.

[Bakomagic]

I'd hate to lose Ross. He became my one of my favorite Magic players. Easily my favorite on this year's team. But he's expiring and if the Magic can turn him into a young guard with potential, then sure.

Feel the same way, Also feel like trading Ross would end our chances of making the playoffs, so we may as well look at moving Vooch, Fournier and possibly AG.

All in for playoffs or all in for development and asset collection. just don't end up 9-12th in the east standings!

[OrlandoDream]

I'd hate to lose Ross. He became my one of my favorite Magic players. Easily my favorite on this year's team. But he's expiring and if the Magic can turn him into a young guard with potential, then sure.

I can't see us trading him if the goal is to make the PO this year:. We should be extending him right now

[Howard Mass]

The Magic will have to decide after this season what to do with Vucevic and Ross.

I think both should be re-signed but then some decisions will need to be made on how to improve the PG position and maybe even at swing man.

Lots of the talent will be the frontcourt and has to be spread around more.

[Skybox]

I'd hate to lose Ross. He became my one of my favorite Magic players. Easily my favorite on this year's team. But he's expiring and if the Magic can turn him into a young guard with potential, then sure.

I can't see us trading him if the goal is to make the PO this year:. We should be extending him right now

The worst part of trading Ross will be all the jabber on here about "this is who we got for Oladipo and Sabonis" as the endless chain of whining resets and continues. I love Ross's demeanor but this team is in a place to build for tomorrow. I'd like to see Vuc (or Bamba) moved along with Ross and more to go after a premier guard. This is a decent team playing to its potential this season. It's fun to watch but I don't want to watch the same team next year. Waiting until offseason with Vuc and Ross is a mistake unless the plan is to re-sign both.

[fklt]

biyombo was a pogo stick with a wagging finger who was in love with himself with no drive to improve. reason clifford hated him in charlotte was he was not doing anything basketball related he was told to do in practice and constanly doing crossfit stuff to jump higher and ****. contract he got was a disgrace for the nba as a whole, not just us.

bamba although he has some warts and is incredibly raw, has some post moves, can dribble a bit, has a jumpshot, is way bigger, has a wider reach and a overall smart dude off the court.

just because same people who are excited about bamba were also excited about biyombo and going crazy for his every block or something doesn't mean at all that the players are similar. that's a knack on those people on the board more than it's a knack on bamba to be honest.

[BadMofoPimp]

biyombo was a pogo stick with a wagging finger who was in love with himself with no drive to improve. reason clifford hated him in charlotte was he was not doing anything basketball related he was told to do in practice and constanly doing crossfit stuff to jump higher and ****. contract he got was a disgrace for the nba as a whole, not just us.

bamba although he has some warts and is incredibly raw, has some post moves, can dribble a bit, has a jumpshot, is way bigger, has a wider reach and a overall smart dude off the court.

just because same people who are excited about bamba were also excited about biyombo and going crazy for his every block or something doesn't mean at all that the players are similar. that's a knack on those people on the board more than it's a knack on bamba to be honest.

Bismark was brought in for his defense and rebounding. He was worse than Vuc at rebounding and marginally better at defense if that. Biz just doesn't have the size at 6'9" to defend elite big men and would get crushed one on one. He was defined by having a good 4-5 game stretch in the playoffs one time and got his huge payday based off the hype even after 5 years of poor play. Bamba has shown greater agility, has better hands, great length and height. He can be molded into a solid player.

[Catledge]

biyombo was a pogo stick with a wagging finger who was in love with himself with no drive to improve. reason clifford hated him in charlotte was he was not doing anything basketball related he was told to do in practice and constanly doing crossfit stuff to jump higher and ****. contract he got was a disgrace for the nba as a whole, not just us.

bamba although he has some warts and is incredibly raw, has some post moves, can dribble a bit, has a jumpshot, is way bigger, has a wider reach and a overall smart dude off the court.

just because same people who are excited about bamba were also excited about biyombo and going crazy for his every block or something doesn't mean at all that the players are similar. that's a knack on those people on the board more than it's a knack on bamba to be honest.

It's also worth noting that while Bamba isn't very smart on the court yet, he is way way b-ball smarter than Biz. All you have to do is compare the frequency of moving screen fouls.

[tiderulz]

might see about a 2-3 yr deal with some team options on Bledsoe. He isnt a star, but he is capable and we can get a young guy in behind him.

Some 3-4 years ago, this board was excited about him, if I recall.

But why would the Bucks trade away their starting PG in a year they have title ambitions? That he's expiring means this is even harder to imagine.

Or are you thinking about signing him in the FA market next off-season? That is quite imaginable.

Bledsoe is a FA this summer, that is what i was referring to, assuming a PG isnt picked up at the trade deadline

[woosah]

The Magic would prefer to trade Jonathan Simmons. Simmons has two years remaining on his deal, although only $1 million of his $5.7 million deal is guaranteed for next season.

This made me chuckle. Duh.

Simmons can't feel too hot if he sees something like that though. Also interesting Stein made no mention of interest in Vuc/Evan. No interest? Not on the market?

[drsd]

Also interesting Stein made no mention of interest in Vuc/Evan. No interest? Not on the market?

Virtually every team in the league would make a competitive offer for Vučević if he was presented for trade. At 12M, to have a All-Star caliber threat, particularly the contending teams would salivate at renting him this year.

[pepe1991]

Lol at Biz-Bamba comparison

[drsd]

Bledsoe is a FA this summer, that is what i was referring to, assuming a PG isnt picked up at the trade deadline

If the Magic do resign Vučević and Ross, that will eat at all available money. This reverts the Magic back to the original plan: the 2019 off-season.

If the Magic is still hovering around 500 in early Feb., and Vučević is still playing with All-star numbers and Ross with 6th-man-of-the-year numbers, it is not so crazy that they would be resigned.

I believe every fan on this board would have seen Vučević and Ross as 22M off of the books this year. New plan I guess.


..

[fendilim]

You know what’s depressing? Knowing that next year Zion, Barrett and all the top talent in the draft will be playing anywhere but in Orlando and we will be peddling the same team again with a minor tweak in starting PG.

You know whats depressing? Losing out on those top talents AND either or both Vuc and Ross leaves for nothing.

[woosah]

Also interesting Stein made no mention of interest in Vuc/Evan. No interest? Not on the market?

Virtually every team in the league would make a competitive offer for Vučević if he was presented for trade. At 12M, to have a All-Star caliber threat, particularly the contending teams would salivate at renting him this year.

You would think, so that's why i would figure he'd say "Ross and Vucevic drawing trade interest". The point was probably to put out that Simms could be had, but just saying.

[OrlandoNed]

You know what’s depressing? Knowing that next year Zion, Barrett and all the top talent in the draft will be playing anywhere but in Orlando and we will be peddling the same team again with a minor tweak in starting PG.

Only, every year it seems that *insert top college player* is this coveted savior—look at Fultz and how that worked out. We haven’t had a 1st overall pick since Dwight left. It isn’t like we’ve made some huge mistake by trying to finally put a competitive team out there with competent coaching.

Zion and Barrett both look great at their current level, but so did Ingram, Ball, Okafor, Fultz, etc.

Then you have guys like Giannis and Gobert, who were much deeper in the draft, one is talked about as the heir apparent to the “best in the league” title and the other has been a bonafide starter for years. Point being, let the chips fall where they may and see what you have.

Right now I see Magic management prioritising making the playoffs this year.


..

No s**t, Sherlock. The front office has said as much for about 5 years now.

[tiderulz]

The Magic would prefer to trade Jonathan Simmons. Simmons has two years remaining on his deal, although only $1 million of his $5.7 million deal is guaranteed for next season.

This made me chuckle. Duh.

Simmons can't feel too hot if he sees something like that though. Also interesting Stein made no mention of interest in Vuc/Evan. No interest? Not on the market?

if Simmons doesnt like that, play better.

[OrlandoNed]

It isn’t like we’ve made some huge mistake by trying to finally put a competitive team out there with competent coaching.

You know what’s depressing? Knowing that next year Zion, Barrett and all the top talent in the draft will be playing anywhere but in Orlando and we will be peddling the same team again with a minor tweak in starting PG.

Only, every year it seems that *insert top college player* is this coveted savior—look at Fultz and how that worked out. We haven’t had a 1st overall pick since Dwight left.
Zion and Barrett both look great at their current level, but so did Ingram, Ball, Okafor, Fultz, etc.

Then you have guys like Giannis and Gobert, who were much deeper in the draft, one is talked about as the heir apparent to the “best in the league” title and the other has been a bonafide starter for years. Point being, let the chips fall where they may and see what you have.

Just remember that the only times in franchise history we've been better than a 1st round exit is with a team built around a superstar that was a #1 overall pick. Chips falling where they may is a recipe for unending mediocrity, waiting for dumb luck to bail you out. Screw that.

I want championships. Championship teams have superstars. Easiest way to get a superstar, in the draft. Best spot in the draft a superstar, #1. Easiest way to land the #1 pick, have the worst record. Best way to have worst record, have worst team....

You can't count on dumb luck saving your franchise, what you can count on is mathematical odds and yourself. Controlling your destiny by playing to the best odds is a lot faster way to get to the promised land. Sitting on the fence between tanking and contending with a team who's ceiling is capped at a possible fluke upset series win into 2nd round of playoffs is just a waste of everybody's time.

Success is proactive, not reactive.

[Knightro]

It's Kyler, so take it with a grain of salt. But he says the Magic are more interested in Rozier than Russell.

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