Surfing the New CBA - Weltman Comment and Target

[cedric76]

The new CBA is changing how teams are built

Shams mentioned that people around the league are expecting Boston to move some contract around to shed salaries

Their starting 5 now compare to ours in 2yrs (when apron s amount will be higher)

Jrue: 32 M - Suggs : 32 M (same)
D White: 28 M - ????
JB : 53 M - Franz : 41 M (-12)
JT: 54 M - Paolo : 49 M (-5)
Porz: 30 M - WCJ : 18 M (-12)

Weltman mentioned that this summer we are going after a proven offensive player / proven shot making but have to be smart with the cap numbers, so you can expect us to go for a guard that doesnt make more than 35 M (ideally less than 30M) per year (using a Cole 13M + Gary 7.5 Exp + Jett 5.5 M + FRPs).

Many on this board want to trade WCJ, but he is a good fit next to franz and P5 (Perfect for our Switch defensive scheme) and at his price i cant see him going anywhere



So the targets we can remove are:
Booker
Lavine
Trae
Kyrie
Ja
Lamelo
Maxey



That leaves us with:
Quickley (still a bit expensive)
Poole (i m not a Fan)
Dejounte Murray (not good enough at 3PT)
Vassel ( i really like him but he is injury prone and i dont think SA will shop him except if it s in a 3way deal to get giannis)
Tyler Herro (not a fan of the player and his contract but he is a Proven offensive player)
Simons (seems to be a Board Favourite, he loves Orlando, but D is bad and not sure how much he would ask money wise next season)
RJ barrett (might not be good enough from 3PT)
Cam johnson (not really a Guard, but a lineup suggs,franz,cam, paolo, WCJ could be scary)
Norman Powel
Sexton (my Pick)
Trey Murphy (would be an awesome pick as he is locked for many years but injury prone)
Coby White (but he would be a 1yr rental as we couldnt retain him next season)
Austin reaves (Could be a very good fit too, but LAL will trade him for a C)
Malik monk (who we wanted last year)

I didnt mention FA like Beasley and others as we cant offer them more than the MLE

Any name that pop out?
Who would be your top 3 on that list?
Did i miss anyone?


Looking at this list my top 3 would be:

Trey murphy:
He is an outstanding 3-and-D wing that is locked on a very good contract till 2029
Suggs,Trey,Franz,P5,WCJ would be crazy insane and Trey makes 3 3PT per game which would really help with our spacing

However the price would be very steep

Sexton
I think he is a very good fit, cheap to get, we can lock him long term for around 20 M per, he can play both end of the floor
Could play next to suggs or back him up when he is on the IL, this give flexibility to moses

Simons
The kid can score, he loves orlando, however if we trade for him we d have to extend him right away at 20 M per year and we dont want to enter difficult contract extension during summer 2026 when many team with have money to throw around.
I dont like his D at ALL but he has the tool to be a good defender so maybe Moses can turn him into an above average defender (i wouldn't bet my house on it though).

[cedric76]

I LL add this here so people understand that our contracts are well constructed

https://www.spotrac.com/nba/orlando-magic/yearly

By 2027
Paolo will make close to 30% of our cap
Franz will make less than 25% of our cap
Suggs will make less than 16% of our cap
WCJ (our starting C) 10 % of our cap
The guard we ll get this summer (simons, sexton etc..) and extended for around 20 M will make 12% of our cap
JI will make 7% of our cap (and can be cut if he plays less than 52 games ( 0 $ guaranteed)
TDS 3%
If we extend Moe long term i could see him at 6% of our cap

We are in great hand with Jeff
As long as we get that starting guard for 20-25M long term , we are in GREAT shape

[zaymon]

We are in good spot. Weltman made many mistakes, but overall he did well. Drafted very good at the top of the lottery. Kept our books clean. Tried to move assets into the future.
He didnt draft great later in the draft. He didnt sign gems in free agency. He keeps weak players for too long. Some of it you can explain that he valued development more than winning.... until now.
You can argue we needed to be good enough to make playoffs at the lowest cost possible... i think he did it two times at the very small margin.

From your targets i like Sexton the most. He is a scorer and tough player.
Simons i dont like much. He seems fragile both physically and mentally.
Murphy i cant imagine being available. They will trade Zion before him.
Coby is also option but same as Simon i dont like his mental profile.

[cedric76]

We are in good spot. Weltman made many mistakes, but overall he did well. Drafted very good at the top of the lottery. Kept our books clean. Tried to move assets into the future.
He didnt draft great later in the draft. He didnt sign gems in free agency. He keeps weak players for too long. Some of it you can explain that he valued development more than winning.... until now.
You can argue we needed to be good enough to make playoffs at the lowest cost possible... i think he did it two times at the very small margin.

From your targets i like Sexton the most. He is a scorer and tough player.
Simons i dont like much. He seems fragile both physically and mentally.
Murphy i cant imagine being available. They will trade Zion before him.
Coby is also option but same as Simon i dont like his mental profile.

Problèm with Cody is that we would lose him during summer 2026, so not worth trading for him

[Bensational]

Jrue: 32 M - Suggs : 32 M (same)
D White: 28 M - ????
JB : 53 M - Franz : 41 M (-12)
JT: 54 M - Paolo : 49 M (-5)
Porz: 30 M - WCJ : 18 M (-12)

That right there is why White is my ultimate offseason target. If we are trying to replicate a lot of what Boston are doing, can't do better than adding one of them to sure-up our biggest weakness. Reaves and Herro rank pretty highly for me after White. Giddey would be a big swing and maybe not the right answer, but I'd s&t for him if it were possible.

One thing I'd argue is that because our young guys and their max contracts are relatively low compared to that of 3rd-contract max contracts ($80M-ish combined vs up to $120M for some duos), the Magic can probably afford to take on another max level contract if it expires in the next year or 2, if it means a big step up in their level of competition immediately. Now is the time to spend up, because we can always pare it back in the future. So maybe names like Booker, Ja and Trae aren't completely off the table for financial reasons.

[Skybox]

I LL add this here so people understand that our contracts are well constructed

https://www.spotrac.com/nba/orlando-magic/yearly

By 2027
Paolo will make close to 30% of our cap
Franz will make less than 25% of our cap
Suggs will make less than 16% of our cap
WCJ (our starting C) 10 % of our cap
The guard we ll get this summer (simons, sexton etc..) and extended for around 20 M will make 12% of our cap
JI will make 7% of our cap (and can be cut if he plays less than 52 games ( 0 $ guaranteed)
TDS 3%
If we extend Moe long term i could see him at 6% of our cap

We are in great hand with Jeff
As long as we get that starting guard for 20-25M long term , we are in GREAT shape

You realize that you're at 100% of the cap with the first 6 guys and one of them plays 14mpg (when he plays) and one of them plays 55 games per year?

Presuming that KCP's salary goes to the new guy...

I know it's not a hard cap, but I guess I'd rather have my 6 best guys getting paid and the rest NOT...you've left off very expensive deep subs like Moe, Goga, what will AB make by then? Weltman could, conceivably, fix all of the imbalances this summer...but it will look like one of my maniacally busy posts on the trade thread...unlikely, and even if he did, he doesn't get a parade for undoing his f**kups and previous derelictions of duty. That's like eating McDonalds for 6 months to get as disgusting as possible before beginning your crash diet and then getting an award for losing so much weight.

[cedric76]

Jrue: 32 M - Suggs : 32 M (same)
D White: 28 M - ????
JB : 53 M - Franz : 41 M (-12)
JT: 54 M - Paolo : 49 M (-5)
Porz: 30 M - WCJ : 18 M (-12)

That right there is why White is my ultimate offseason target. If we are trying to replicate a lot of what Boston are doing, can't do better than adding one of them to sure-up our biggest weakness. Reaves and Herro rank pretty highly for me after White. Giddey would be a big swing and maybe not the right answer, but I'd s&t for him if it were possible.

One thing I'd argue is that because our young guys and their max contracts are relatively low compared to that of 3rd-contract max contracts ($80M-ish combined vs up to $120M for some duos), the Magic can probably afford to take on another max level contract if it expires in the next year or 2, if it means a big step up in their level of competition immediately. Now is the time to spend up, because we can always pare it back in the future. So maybe names like Booker, Ja and Trae aren't completely off the table for financial reasons.

D white would be very good indeed

[Bensational]

You realize that you're at 100% of the cap with the first 6 guys and one of them plays 14mpg (when he plays) and one of them plays 55 games per year?

Presuming that KCP's salary goes to the new guy...

I know it's not a hard cap, but I guess I'd rather have my 6 best guys getting paid and the rest NOT...you've left off very expensive deep subs like Moe, Goga, what will AB make by then?

It’s interesting tracking how cap pressures have influenced different teams recently. Phoenix are likely about to blow up a team with Durant and Booker because they’re too top-heavy. Boston is probably setting the standard for roster depth and contract dispersion but even they are rumoured to be looking to trim down salary.

What you call expensive subs are what I consider to be our potential bargains like Pritchard. Backup guys who outperform their contracts impact to dollar. But you’re right that now is the time to start making sure all that money is seen on the court and not the bench.

[Skybox]

You realize that you're at 100% of the cap with the first 6 guys and one of them plays 14mpg (when he plays) and one of them plays 55 games per year?

Presuming that KCP's salary goes to the new guy...

I know it's not a hard cap, but I guess I'd rather have my 6 best guys getting paid and the rest NOT...you've left off very expensive deep subs like Moe, Goga, what will AB make by then?

It’s interesting tracking how cap pressures have influenced different teams recently. Phoenix are likely about to blow up a team with Durant and Booker because they’re too top-heavy. Boston is probably setting the standard for roster depth and contract dispersion but even they are rumoured to be looking to trim down salary.

What you call expensive subs are what I consider to be our potential bargains like Pritchard. Backup guys who outperform their contracts impact to dollar. But you’re right that now is the time to start making sure all that money is seen on the court and not the bench.

You can have one or two 'Pritchards", not fill your bench with guys in that range...even Gary Harris, who is probably 10 deep, made $7.5m

[mattdelray1220]

Sexton makes the most sense as it would take Cole + Jett and a late first. Maybe even Denvers pick this year. To me it seems as if Caleb is higher on the teams board than Jett so I think we can move on. Sexton is an upgrade over Cole but not by much imo. Does he make us contenders? Prob not. BUT he does keep us flexible and we are getting Jalen + Moe back. I think the FO also would like this because we can keep giving AB minutes and developing him. If we went all in and got a guy like Trae, AB goes from 24-28min to under 20. Sexton is a DAWG and would fit in nicely with this team.

Someone in the middle like Simons would require a little more to match salaries as well. Something like JI and Cole + picks. He is also going to require more than 25 mill per year after that. Is not a defender at all. The hometown story is nice though and Orlando would love to push that. Can Suggs, KCP, Franz, WCJ hide his defense. Prob a little.

Teams normally make one trade but in my dream world we make 2. I think both are realistic and make sense salary wise.

Cole, Jett, Denver pick for Sexton
JI, Gary (pick up his 7.5) and 2 future 1sts for Cam Johnson

Sexton, AB
Suggs, KCP, Caleb
Franz, TDS
Paolo, Cam
WCJ, Moe, Goga

Draft a Forward.

Even if we have to let Gary walk and make it Goga and JI for Cam, I would do that.

it gives us a legit 10 man rotation. 9 man for playoffs with no TDS although I think he will earn PT.

Balance of youth and veterans.

Utah would def be interested in this as they will not resign Sexton and get Jett as a project + a pick and Cole can easily be 6th man for them.
BK is a tough one. They prob dont want to pay Cam and want to accumulate as many picks as possible while tanking so they can draft high + make package for disgruntled stars.

Also Orlando (which is a very weird org) cares about its players. Almost too much. Cole gets to go to a similar family like org and JI gets to play back home. They will sleep better at night. I legit think they care about this stuff.

[Bensational]

You realize that you're at 100% of the cap with the first 6 guys and one of them plays 14mpg (when he plays) and one of them plays 55 games per year?

Presuming that KCP's salary goes to the new guy...

I know it's not a hard cap, but I guess I'd rather have my 6 best guys getting paid and the rest NOT...you've left off very expensive deep subs like Moe, Goga, what will AB make by then?

It’s interesting tracking how cap pressures have influenced different teams recently. Phoenix are likely about to blow up a team with Durant and Booker because they’re too top-heavy. Boston is probably setting the standard for roster depth and contract dispersion but even they are rumoured to be looking to trim down salary.

What you call expensive subs are what I consider to be our potential bargains like Pritchard. Backup guys who outperform their contracts impact to dollar. But you’re right that now is the time to start making sure all that money is seen on the court and not the bench.

You can have one or two 'Pritchards", not fill your bench with guys in that range...even Gary Harris, who is probably 10 deep, made $7.5m

For some reason I thought Pritchard was on a poison pill deal about to hit more than double what he’s on. That’s an insane deal and an outlier for a 6th/7th man, really shouldn’t be looked at as any kind of expectation, IMO.

I think you want depth though just to cover injuries. That’ll cost for decent guys unless you get good at mining that 2nd round talent and cheap journeyman looking for a team to break out on.

[Skybox]

The CBA and the League Office work for the owners...the owners don't want to pay so much...so, rather than negotiate hard, they smile and shake hands with agents for fear of being blackballed and then they run to Adam Silver to fix it by making rules that force themselves (via their GMs) to figure out ways to stop overpaying marginal guys. The Players Union believes the owners are making way too much money off of the talent, who do all the work and who the fans pay to see, so they negotiate for a more favorable CBA...the whole thing is to try to get all of the GMs to moderate themselves without looking like their "disrespecting" the players...it's a chicken and egg thing and this version, imo, is poorly conceived. The idea that a SuperMax will help small market or unattractive markets retain their super talent (which they drafted) is, at the same time, punishing them by bloating their cap by the star (intentionally or not) expecting a Supermax, where if he was traded he would "only" expect a max deal, which is significantly less. I think that was at the core of the Luka deal...and they knew it was hideous, so they didn't shop it around publicly, even though they could have gotten the biggest trade haul in history pretty easily with a few calls. Allowing teams to dump money on their homegrown superstars is a good idea, but having it all held against the cap is like a BIG penalty...the irony of a guy grabbing such a big chunk of the cap and then growing frustrated with his FO for not surrounding him with good players is comical. It's a mess.

We're already surfing it and our best 3 guys are 22 yo.

[Cammo101]

My takeaway from this is that because we made a bad decision last offseason to sign KCP instead of going after someone who could actually move the meter, we are now hand-tied from making a run at anyone who can make us an actual contender. So real contenders will find a way to make it work with guys like Booker or Ja or LaMelo, and we will settle for an also ran who makes us marginally better. That does sound like us.

[Skybox]

It’s interesting tracking how cap pressures have influenced different teams recently. Phoenix are likely about to blow up a team with Durant and Booker because they’re too top-heavy. Boston is probably setting the standard for roster depth and contract dispersion but even they are rumoured to be looking to trim down salary.

What you call expensive subs are what I consider to be our potential bargains like Pritchard. Backup guys who outperform their contracts impact to dollar. But you’re right that now is the time to start making sure all that money is seen on the court and not the bench.

You can have one or two 'Pritchards", not fill your bench with guys in that range...even Gary Harris, who is probably 10 deep, made $7.5m

For some reason I thought Pritchard was on a poison pill deal about to hit more than double what he’s on. That’s an insane deal and an outlier for a 6th/7th man, really shouldn’t be looked at as any kind of expectation, IMO.

I think you want depth though just to cover injuries. That’ll cost for decent guys unless you get good at mining that 2nd round talent and cheap journeyman looking for a team to break out on.

According to Spotrac...Pritchard makes $6.7m,
next year $7.2 (almost G Harris money!)
then 7.8, then 8.3m
*He presents NOOOOOO concerns for BOS

Sam Hauser makes $2m, but his jumps to $10m, then 10.8, 11.7, and finally 12.5...he might be on his way out with a nice parting gift of a deal. BTW, I don't know if it's an overpay for Sam, individually, but it's too much for the role the C's have for him. This has happened many times for pure shooters that are mediocre at everything else...I remember a while back when Gary Trent, Fournier, Beasley, Kennard were all making 14-18 per, now Kennard isn't worth his $9m and Beasley and GTJ are making like 2 or 3m. It's a cycle of obsession, overpay, correction...like a lot of markets I guess.

[Bensational]

The CBA and the League Office work for the owners...the owners don't want to pay so much...so, rather than negotiate hard, they smile and shake hands with agents for fear of being blackballed and then they run to Adam Silver to fix it by making rules that force themselves (via their GMs) to figure out ways to stop overpaying marginal guys. The Players Union believes the owners are making way too much money off of the talent, who do all the work and who the fans pay to see, so they negotiate for a more favorable CBA...the whole thing is to try to get all of the GMs to moderate themselves without looking like their "disrespecting" the players...it's a chicken and egg thing and this version, imo, is poorly conceived. The idea that a SuperMax will help small market or unattractive markets retain their super talent (which they drafted) is, at the same time, punishing them by bloating their cap by the star (intentionally or not) expecting a Supermax, where if he was traded he would "only" expect a max deal, which is significantly less. I think that was at the core of the Luka deal...and they knew it was hideous, so they didn't shop it around publicly, even though they could have gotten the biggest trade haul in history pretty easily with a few calls. Allowing teams to dump money on their homegrown superstars is a good idea, but having it all held against the cap is like a BIG penalty...the irony of a guy grabbing such a big chunk of the cap and then growing frustrated with his FO for not surrounding him with good players is comical. It's a mess.

We're already surfing it and our best 3 guys are 22 yo.

Agreed. I’ve said many times before that the financial bonuses of max extensions shouldn’t be cap applicable and it should only count as a max against the cap - but if traded it immediately starts counting against the cap. It would incentivise guys staying and make it harder for teams who acquire them, like a poison pill.

Another side effect is when teams go all in on a few max contracts they’re generally scraping the barrel for supporting cast off the bench. I think unofficial tranches will/have/are forming, kinda represented in Cedric’s original Boston blueprint. But we’ll see how long they want to pay the luxury tax for that.

[Skybox]

My takeaway from this is that because we made a bad decision last offseason to sign KCP instead of going after someone who could actually move the meter, we are now hand-tied from making a run at anyone who can make us an actual contender. So real contenders will find a way to make it work with guys like Booker or Ja or LaMelo, and we will settle for an also ran who makes us marginally better. That does sound like us.

Probably true...you just have the best chance picking off talent from (1) tanking teams whose priorities are the opposite of a win-now team...or, (2) you think really hard and find a team that has 3 of the same thing you want and you have something they lack at around the same value.

Hopefully, there's a team out there that would value a tough, proven vet 3&D guy and is so in need of a win-now piece that the $22m salary isn't a deal breaker. We'll see. The other alternative is to basically pay someone (with draft picks) or a young, less expensive guy (like AB) to compensate for the bad deal you made last summer...this is tough to sell to fans, but it's a big reality with the CBA.

Timing and needs...If I assume NOLA (with a new GM, maybe a new Coach, maybe a Zion trade, without Ingram...basically, in need of a new vision) isn't trying to contend next season, with Dejounte Murray still healing up...why would an expiring CJ McCollum at $33m have any real value to their team? Why not gear everything towards a glorious rise in 2026-27, with this year's top 5 pick and next year's lottery pick, a healthy Murray, maybe a healthy Zion or a load of returns from the trade, etc...Take Cole Anthony, who has a TO, and let him run point this year as Chief Tank Commander and occasional thriller, add tough, healthy vet KCP with the idea of jettisoning Cole at the earliest opportunity and pairing KCP and Murray as a long, fearsome, well-matched starting backcourt. You've also got Trey Murphy, Herb Jones, and a handful of young promising guys like Hawkins and Missi with another year under their belt...maybe you even get ORL to throw in some seconds. What do you care if CJ lights up ORL with the comeback story of the decade, he was probably leaving anyway.

Anyway, just saying that we have to look hard for the pieces that fit us and, for whatever reason, are not as valued by the present team.

There's also (3) you come back empty handed and whine to your fanbase that your job is too hard for you to do and the other GMs are tough

[Skybox]

The CBA and the League Office work for the owners...the owners don't want to pay so much...so, rather than negotiate hard, they smile and shake hands with agents for fear of being blackballed and then they run to Adam Silver to fix it by making rules that force themselves (via their GMs) to figure out ways to stop overpaying marginal guys. The Players Union believes the owners are making way too much money off of the talent, who do all the work and who the fans pay to see, so they negotiate for a more favorable CBA...the whole thing is to try to get all of the GMs to moderate themselves without looking like their "disrespecting" the players...it's a chicken and egg thing and this version, imo, is poorly conceived. The idea that a SuperMax will help small market or unattractive markets retain their super talent (which they drafted) is, at the same time, punishing them by bloating their cap by the star (intentionally or not) expecting a Supermax, where if he was traded he would "only" expect a max deal, which is significantly less. I think that was at the core of the Luka deal...and they knew it was hideous, so they didn't shop it around publicly, even though they could have gotten the biggest trade haul in history pretty easily with a few calls. Allowing teams to dump money on their homegrown superstars is a good idea, but having it all held against the cap is like a BIG penalty...the irony of a guy grabbing such a big chunk of the cap and then growing frustrated with his FO for not surrounding him with good players is comical. It's a mess.

We're already surfing it and our best 3 guys are 22 yo.

Agreed. I’ve said many times before that the financial bonuses of max extensions shouldn’t be cap applicable and it should only count as a max against the cap - but if traded it immediately starts counting against the cap. It would incentivise guys staying and make it harder for teams who acquire them, like a poison pill.

Another side effect is when teams go all in on a few max contracts they’re generally scraping the barrel for supporting cast off the bench. I think unofficial tranches will/have/are forming, kinda represented in Cedric’s original Boston blueprint. But we’ll see how long they want to pay the luxury tax for that.

Yeah...that's a pretty elegant solution. I think I did hear it from you originally. BOS has publicly acknowledged the problem, even as defending champs. Another team to watch is MEM...JJJ is about to get a massive raise (and he's a non-rebounder) to go with Bane's $36.7 and rising (3&D guy) along with Ja's $39.5 and rising (problem child, electrifying but inefficient)...none of those guys are top 25 players (I think?). They are all REALLY good, but...they need a lot more to compete...they have some young talent, but talk about a slim margin of error (or injury or suspensions, etc).

Rough seas out there...good GMs will separate themselves from the pack...OKC and HOU out to a strong lead with young talent, appropriate vets on short term deals, picks stashed, etc. ORL, despite all of our/my issues with Weltman, is in really good shape but Winter is Coming if he whiffs this summer.

[cedric76]

I LL add this here so people understand that our contracts are well constructed

https://www.spotrac.com/nba/orlando-magic/yearly

By 2027
Paolo will make close to 30% of our cap
Franz will make less than 25% of our cap
Suggs will make less than 16% of our cap
WCJ (our starting C) 10 % of our cap
The guard we ll get this summer (simons, sexton etc..) and extended for around 20 M will make 12% of our cap
JI will make 7% of our cap (and can be cut if he plays less than 52 games ( 0 $ guaranteed)
TDS 3%
If we extend Moe long term i could see him at 6% of our cap

We are in great hand with Jeff
As long as we get that starting guard for 20-25M long term , we are in GREAT shape

You realize that you're at 100% of the cap with the first 6 guys and one of them plays 14mpg (when he plays) and one of them plays 55 games per year?

Presuming that KCP's salary goes to the new guy...

I know it's not a hard cap, but I guess I'd rather have my 6 best guys getting paid and the rest NOT...you've left off very expensive deep subs like Moe, Goga, what will AB make by then? Weltman could, conceivably, fix all of the imbalances this summer...but it will look like one of my maniacally busy posts on the trade thread...unlikely, and even if he did, he doesn't get a parade for undoing his f**kups and previous derelictions of duty. That's like eating McDonalds for 6 months to get as disgusting as possible before beginning your crash diet and then getting an award for losing so much weight.

Seems like you missed an important point about the CBA and how it works

to give you an example:

For 2024-2025

NBA salary cap is $140,588,00
Luxury Tax: $170,814,000
First Apron: $178,132,000
Second Apron: $188,931,000

I ll turn this into % so it s easier to understand:

Luxury Tax Line is about 21.5% above the cap -->121.5% of Salary cap
First Apron is roughly 26.7% above the cap -->126.7% of Salary cap
Second Apron is approximately 34.4% above the cap -->134.4% of Salary cap


To build a championship-caliber team that avoids the harsh restrictions of the 1st and 2nd aprons, a team should aim for a "Cap-Tiered Roster Structure" like this:

Top 6–7 Players = around 100% (to 105%) of the Cap

These are your core stars and key starters.

Example (Orlando by 2027):

Paolo Banchero (~30%)
Franz Wagner (<25%)
Jalen Suggs (<16%)
Starting Guard (Simons/Sexton or any of the guys that have been mentioned) (~12%)
Wendell Carter Jr. (~10%)
Jonathan Isaac (~7%, non-guaranteed) Keep in mind that he can be cut if he plays less than 52 games ( so by 2027,we ll know if he is broken or not)
Possibly a 7th like Moe Wagner (~6%)


Players 8–11 = ~26.7% of the Cap (Stay Below 1st Apron)
Role players, experienced rotation pieces.

Contracts should be short or team-friendly.
Smart use of MLE, room exception, or homegrown extensions.

Only go above the 1st apron when you're a true contender (which we ll be by 2027).

Players 12–15 = ~8% of the Cap (Stay Below 2nd Apron)
Use rookie second-rounders and veteran minimums.

These spots offer flexibility and are crucial for staying under the 2nd apron, where roster tools become extremely limited.

We can go above the 2nd (if needed) only when we ll be chasing or defending a title.


Why This Works:
Staying below the 1st apron preserves access to mid-level exceptions and trade flexibility.

Staying below the 2nd apron avoids severe penalties:
No sign-and-trade acquisitions.
No aggregating salaries in trades.
Frozen draft picks.

This structure ensures you can retain your stars without being forced into cap-clearing trades.

Bottom Line:
Jeff, unlike Magic Fan, understand this and this is why he Magic are in a great position if they follow this model. As long as they lock in a starting guard within the $20–25M range and continue hitting on draft picks and value contracts, they'll be one of the best-structured teams in the league for long-term contention.

[cedric76]

My takeaway from this is that because we made a bad decision last offseason to sign KCP instead of going after someone who could actually move the meter, we are now hand-tied from making a run at anyone who can make us an actual contender. So real contenders will find a way to make it work with guys like Booker or Ja or LaMelo, and we will settle for an also ran who makes us marginally better. That does sound like us.

You’ve got it wrong — KCP’s deal isn’t what’s limiting us.
By 2027, he’ll have a player option worth around 12% of the cap, which is very manageable. If he still fits, we can re-sign him on a cheaper deal. If not, we just let him walk in 2028 — no long-term damage.

What actually matters is cap sustainability around our core.
Guys like Trae, Booker, or LaMelo would take up 33%+ of the cap — and that simply doesn’t work when you already have Franz and Paolo on big deals.

We’re building a deep, flexible roster. That means we need a starting guard in the $20–25M range — roughly 12–15% of the cap, not someone who eats up a third of it.

This is how you build around your stars without sacrificing the rest of the team.

[zaymon]

Jrue: 32 M - Suggs : 32 M (same)
D White: 28 M - ????
JB : 53 M - Franz : 41 M (-12)
JT: 54 M - Paolo : 49 M (-5)
Porz: 30 M - WCJ : 18 M (-12)

That right there is why White is my ultimate offseason target. If we are trying to replicate a lot of what Boston are doing, can't do better than adding one of them to sure-up our biggest weakness. Reaves and Herro rank pretty highly for me after White. Giddey would be a big swing and maybe not the right answer, but I'd s&t for him if it were possible.

One thing I'd argue is that because our young guys and their max contracts are relatively low compared to that of 3rd-contract max contracts ($80M-ish combined vs up to $120M for some duos), the Magic can probably afford to take on another max level contract if it expires in the next year or 2, if it means a big step up in their level of competition immediately. Now is the time to spend up, because we can always pare it back in the future. So maybe names like Booker, Ja and Trae aren't completely off the table for financial reasons.

I have crazy idea that we can trade for Sabonis. Than our offense can go more through him. Our guards doesnt have to be great ball handlers they can score more on cuts and we can try to prioritize on ball defense.
Its also a.lot harder to switch Sabonis on Wagner/Banchero defender than between those two.
WCJ is not good enough to do it but Sabonis is.
We would need to be a lot more strict with our salary but for two year experiment it could be really interesting and different option.