Magic Resign C/F Moritz Wagner - 2 years, $16M with a team option on the 2nd year

[RookieStar]

With the caveat that this is an absolutely tiny and probably irrelevant sample size...

In 41 minutes together last season, the Moritz Wagner PF and Goga Bitadze C two-man combo had a +30.2 NET rating.

Oh yes it relevant.. MoSwag!!! Lol

[RookieStar]

I think we could have 60-80m.

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Wut??? Those 3 expiring contracts are worth 60-80m together????

Fultz, Isaac, Okeke and Anthony are all impending free agents as well.

Oh i know... but i was talking only those 3 contracts which we kinda extended/signed somewhat yesterday

[ogmagicfan]

YES!!! MoSwag coming back.

You guys missed the most obvious reason. This is just frontloading for Franz impending superstar contract.

That's right, we won't use the MAX on Franz cuz we are funneling that cash *wink wink* via his brother.

This is my hope & the only justification for this kinda contract

The most he got offered from another team is 1-2 mil at most

It better be a team option for the 2nd yr also

[RookieStar]

YES!!! MoSwag coming back.

You guys missed the most obvious reason. This is just frontloading for Franz impending superstar contract.

That's right, we won't use the MAX on Franz cuz we are funneling that cash *wink wink* via his brother.

This is my hope & the only justification for this kinda contract

The most he got offered from another team is 1-2 mil at most

It better be a team option for the 2nd yr also

While i dont believe that Mo only has a 2m offer from another team, i do believe we offered the most for him.

[fendilim]

YES!!! MoSwag coming back.

You guys missed the most obvious reason. This is just frontloading for Franz impending superstar contract.

That's right, we won't use the MAX on Franz cuz we are funneling that cash *wink wink* via his brother.

This is my hope & the only justification for this kinda contract

The most he got offered from another team is 1-2 mil at most

It better be a team option for the 2nd yr also

While i dont believe that Mo only has a 2m offer from another team, i do believe we offered the most for him.

may even be the only team that offered for his services.

Mo was out of the league for a short period before we picked him up mid-season.

[RookieStar]

This is my hope & the only justification for this kinda contract

The most he got offered from another team is 1-2 mil at most

It better be a team option for the 2nd yr also

While i dont believe that Mo only has a 2m offer from another team, i do believe we offered the most for him.

may even be the only team that offered for his services.

Mo was out of the league for a short period before we picked him up mid-season.

Yup we did.... another mans trash and so on and so on..

[fendilim]

Gotta say…

Paying $8M for Moritz and $11M for Ingles, even if they both end up being just one year deals, doesn’t give me much hope that Weltman and Hammond aren’t going to get absolutely pimp slapped in the upcoming Markelle Fultz/Cole Anthony contract negotiations

Eh, they absolutely could (their deals seem to be great or bad, no in between), and I think they're heavy-handed on a lot, but I think it's disingenuous to compare these two specific examples of reaching cap floor on filling out 2 backup spots versus extensions. There is no real incentive to eke out precise value in the current context versus way more far-reaching implications now. Even the Fultz/Isaac ones from two years ago they knew we would be bad, so hopefully there is more restraint.

There's a reason you often see great deals for contending teams and worse teams overpaying for the services of similar vets - and I think if the teams were flipped with the same GMs, you're not finding Pelinka getting cheap gems for the Hornets.

Portis talked about this before with redick

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[Blue_and_Whte]

Well done.

[drsd]

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[drsd]

Next order of business should be to trade a guard for a backup PF or waive Isaac and use that $10M to sign a backup PF.

But I suspect they’re just done with moves.

I like M-Wagner and Ingles as emergency PFs. But I agree that there is now a lot of expectations on Isaac's health.
p.s. Okeke has got to go.

[drsd]

So, third stringer bigs make 8M a year in the new economics of the NBA. Why did I get a Uni degree again ???

[drsd]

Mo Wagner and Goga Bitadze are more of a two-headed backup center.

My guess is the 2nd year is a team option year. Eventually, Mo Wagner will not be with this team and Franz will. For now, Mo is here as a two-headed backup center.

a) big brother will make more than little brother in the 2023/24 AND the 2024.25 seasons.

b) this was absolutely as much about Franz as Mo.

c) the meme-machine is alive !!!!

[drsd]

Who's the primary backup behind Carter: Bitadze or M-Wagner?

I guess it could be a true platoon that coach makes game-situational decisions. That would mean that both players need to always be ready to hear their number called.

[eyriq]

Who's the primary backup behind Carter: Bitadze or M-Wagner?

I guess it could be a true platoon that coach makes game-situational decisions. That would mean that both players need to always be ready to hear their number called.

Follow the money

[drsd]

Who's the primary backup behind Carter: Bitadze or M-Wagner?

I guess it could be a true platoon that coach makes game-situational decisions. That would mean that both players need to always be ready to hear their number called.

Follow the money

Post of the day !!!

[OrlDave]

I'm confused why people are super upset over the amount of what will end up being a one year contract that effects next to nothing going forward. Mortiz has his moments. I love how he gets into the opponents heads. That kind of player is pretty rare. I'm pretty glad he's coming back.

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[Black and Blue]

I'm confused why people are super upset over the amount of what will end up being a one year contract that effects next to nothing going forward. Mortiz has his moments. I love how he gets into the opponents heads. That kind of player is pretty rare. I'm pretty glad he's coming back.

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Agreed. Every move moving forward is forward facing with giving every reason for Franz and Paolo to stay. This was a smart overpay to show Franz how we take care of our own in Orlando.

Mo also is solid insurance if Isaac is out and Goga doesn’t develop. Lots of question marks he helps with in the short term.

[AdamTheGreek]

The big concern is we’re leaning heavily on Isaac for rim protection.

Assuming the second gear is either non-guaranteed or a team option, the difference between $5 and $8 mil. isn’t a big deal. When Moe was fully healthy, he was great (he started in our win streak, brought high scoring). He’s a better big than Goga.
It’s when the injuries were involved that it held him back. I hope he’s healthy entering next season because it held him back last year. Have fun with Franz playing for Germany, and as long as he’s healthy for us entering the season he’ll be great.

Moe can also play PF, Goga cannot.

Also, Joe and Moe gives us two **** on the team now.

[jonbob17]

A little more than I would have thought, not sure who we were bidding against...but Mo is a versatile big capable of playing minutes at both spots.

With the Bol decision lingering...i can't help but think they are shopping someone...2 for 1 or just going to cut bait on one of the forwards.

[Knightro]

A little more than I would have thought, not sure who we were bidding against...but Mo is a versatile big capable of playing minutes at both spots.

With the Bol decision lingering...i can't help but think they are shopping someone...2 for 1 or just going to cut bait on one of the forwards.

Hollinger touched on this a little bit in his column today. His remarks were Ingles centric, but they apply to Moritz as well.

In fact, the smartest plays I’ve seen on the board have come from teams such as Orlando and Indiana, who have adopted something of a hybrid strategy by essentially turning their cap room into both a useful player and a trade exception.

Bruce Brown is overpaid at $45 million over two years, but with a second-year team option he basically operates as a trade exception. If any deal comes up to get the Pacers a truly difference-making player, they have the large expiring deal they need …and that’s true at any point in the next two years if they pick up the option. In the meantime, they landed a genuinely useful player to help in the backcourt; this is way higher up the food chain than absorbing a salary dump.

Orlando had a similar concept with half the money; Ingles isn’t on Brown’s level, but having his deal on the books lets the Magic quickly pivot if a trade opportunity presents itself.

For teams like the Magic and Pacers that are still figuring out what they have, I thought this was a particularly clever use of their cap room, and I was a bit surprised more teams didn’t go for the short-term overpay as a means of rolling over cap space.