Official 2025 Offseason Thread

[Rainwater]

I feel there's more going on or Weltman would've come to terms with Mo and potentially Caleb by now.

It seems like it takes forever for the Magic to sign guys. Franz nor Suggs were quick signings. So I wouldn’t look too much into this.

[Knightro]

I suppose it’s possible the Magic, knowing they will absolutely be a tax team and probably an apron team next year, want to do whatever they can to NOT be a tax team this upcoming season so they don’t start the clock on the repeater tax.

[anothermagicfan]

So Myles Turner is going to Milwaukee for about 27 million a year for the next 4 years. That's like 1 million more than JI and WCJ are getting from us this year and 5-7 million less than we're paying JI and WCJ the following 3 seasons.

I think I'd rather have Turner

[shadrock]

Feels to me like with the huge money being thrown around for bigs this offseason, maybe Moe is reassessing his position. We undoubtedly tried to lowball him given his injury etc, so now we wait and see what happens. Dont be surprised if he gets a better offer elsewhere.

[thelead]

It’s so sad that we should root against Paolo making an all-nba team next season. Just gross. Him triggering a super max can lead to a Boston situation where you keep your big 3 and dismantle everything else to the studs. OKC fans will be thinking the same thing with JDub. They are going to be in a tough spot if he makes another all-nba team.

[Knightro]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

[Bensational]

It’s so sad that we should root against Paolo making an all-nba team next season. Just gross. Him triggering a super max can lead to a Boston situation where you keep your big 3 and dismantle everything else to the studs. OKC fans will be thinking the same thing with JDub. They are going to be in a tough spot if he makes another all-nba team.

SGA just signed a 4 year extension worth $70M per season. They are very quickly going to become unaffordable and OKC don’t appear to be a team prepared to pay the lux tax.

I suppose it’s good for shortening the windows of dynasties and giving new teams a chance to emerge as it forces a lot more roster turnover.

[eyriq]

It’s so sad that we should root against Paolo making an all-nba team next season. Just gross. Him triggering a super max can lead to a Boston situation where you keep your big 3 and dismantle everything else to the studs. OKC fans will be thinking the same thing with JDub. They are going to be in a tough spot if he makes another all-nba team.

SGA just signed a 4 year extension worth $70M per season. They are very quickly going to become unaffordable and OKC don’t appear to be a team prepared to pay the lux tax.

I suppose it’s good for shortening the windows of dynasties and giving new teams a chance to emerge as it forces a lot more roster turnover.

Yeah, its great for parity. I love it.

[yoyojw17]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

And a pick ..... And they got a deal.
Lol.

Can't give them exactly what they need for "no D Dalton"

[yoyojw17]

It’s so sad that we should root against Paolo making an all-nba team next season. Just gross. Him triggering a super max can lead to a Boston situation where you keep your big 3 and dismantle everything else to the studs. OKC fans will be thinking the same thing with JDub. They are going to be in a tough spot if he makes another all-nba team.

SGA just signed a 4 year extension worth $70M per season. They are very quickly going to become unaffordable and OKC don’t appear to be a team prepared to pay the lux tax.

I suppose it’s good for shortening the windows of dynasties and giving new teams a chance to emerge as it forces a lot more roster turnover.

Yeah, its great for parity. I love it.

Bout to get juicy.... That should be the first of 3 extension conversations. How much does JWill and Chet get offered?

[dsg2021]

If you still want to think of big moves because what the heck why not, then consider this. Someone in here said there was a "WCJ and more" for "Nic Claxton" rumor. Feels like a 90% chance we are instead closing ranks and re-signing Mo and probably Caleb alongside a Vet Minimum or two, but you never know..

I kind of already did my full post on if I would do WCJ for Claxton a week ago or so. I sounded more 50/50 on it than I should have, but yes, I would take Claxton for like WCJ, Jett, Goga and Pick(s). Long story short, Claxton doesn't have much range, and has a Hack-a-Shaq vulnerability. But in my eyes, I like his fiery attitude on the floor. I think he is a top center for this meta of switch defending even though it seems he had better defensive years 2-3 seasons ago. And I think ORL starts to intimidate teams even more. Look at how CLE and BOS limp away from series with us, before Claxton. Worst case, Claxton has to go 28 MPG in the Playoffs because of his lack of shooting, but I actually trust Mo and JI to be good closers.
As it stands, WCJ is a jack of all trades, master of none, but I did not see him being enough of a "release valve" on the offensive side either. He didn't get to 2-3 3PM's, nor up to 14-16 PPG with spacing and versatile skills. Just good rebounding and usually good defense in the paint but not on the perimeter. On the flip side, WCJ turned only 26 recently and maybe the growing experience, and the more shooters we have now, will unlock a bigger WCJ impact.

[CocoaFan]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

With Moe out until Dec/Jan I don't see the Magic trading either Wendell or Goga before the trade deadline. It seems like an easier way to shed salary is to dump Jett into somebody's TPE (Nets?)

[yoyojw17]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJuQoiXRgSS/?igsh=bGl0ZnZuNHdmNjM=

Dang Paulo!

(Assuming not doctored)

[jonbob17]

I suppose it’s possible the Magic, knowing they will absolutely be a tax team and probably an apron team next year, want to do whatever they can to NOT be a tax team this upcoming season so they don’t start the clock on the repeater tax.

Isn't that determined on the last day of the 2025-26 season?

[Knightro]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

With Moe out until Dec/Jan I don't see the Magic trading either Wendell or Goga before the trade deadline. It seems like an easier way to shed salary is to dump Jett into somebody's TPE (Nets?)

We don't know if this is the case though.

[SOUL]

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=U-6BxaJHr50VVe8YqOpDSQ

Keith thinks Mo is back, but did say it’s “complicated”.

Just a random thought: JI’s renegotiation was so embarrassingly unnecessary. Orlando could have simply waited and signed him for a fraction of the cost even with a healthy season under his belt.

I’m not going to bash Welt because he’s doing almost everything we asked him to do, but most of the issues we’re going through right now are due to self inflicted wounds.

Yeah, the JI contract is really a head scratcher. For a team that does so many team options, why isnt there one on that one? Especially given his history. The thing that concerns me is that he had a down year after signing the contract, but played through the necessary number of games to avoid the non-guarantee aspect of the deal. I believe he only has to trudge through 52 games a year to make the full amount.

That said, I could be wrong about the non-guaranteed nature of the deal. Is there an aspect that let's us waive him for any reason and avoid the backend of the contract?

Jonathan Isaac: Only $8,000,000 guaranteed in 2026/27, HoopsHype has learned. Guarantee increases to full if he plays in at least 52 games during the 2025/26 regular season, or if not waived by one day after the conclusion of the 2026/27 moratorium period.

https://hoopshype.com/salaries/orlando_magic/

Total guaranteed new money: $66,600,000 (New 2024-25 Base + 2025-26 Base + $8 million 2026-27 Base)
2026-27: $8 million guaranteed, fully guaranteed if Isaac plays 52 games in 2025-26 or one day after the 2026 moratorium
2027-28: non-guaranteed, fully guaranteed if Isaac plays 52 games in 2026-27 or one day after the 2027 moratorium
2028-29: non-guaranteed, fully guaranteed if Isaac plays 52 games in 2027-28 or one day after the 2028 moratorium

https://www.spotrac.com/nba/player/_/id/23601/jonathan-isaac

Am I wrong, that if we waive him at end of 2026 season (before 2026 moratorium), then he is owned 8 million in 26-27 and that is it?

Also not to say every overpay is a 5head move but every deal can't be the best penny pinching move just for salary matching purposes as well. Would suck to have to add an extra piece that you like because you need more salary to move for a specific player. As long as it isn't an albatross contract.

[Def Swami]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

With Moe out until Dec/Jan I don't see the Magic trading either Wendell or Goga before the trade deadline. It seems like an easier way to shed salary is to dump Jett into somebody's TPE (Nets?)

We don't know if this is the case though.

Every recovery is unique, but on average, ACL is still a year long recovery from surgery. I’ll be surprised if Mo is back sooner than December/January. And knowing how the Magic handled past ACL tears, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s closer to all-star break.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7934048/

A total of 26 athletes underwent ACLR; of these, 84% (95% CI, 63.9%-95.5%) returned to play at a mean 372.5 days (95% CI, 323.5-421.5 days) after surgery. Career length after injury was a mean of 3.36 seasons (95% CI, 2.27-4.45 seasons). Factors that contributed to an increased probability of return to play included younger age at injury (odds ratio, 0.71 [95% CI, 0.47-0.92]; P = .0337) and fewer years of experience in the NBA before injury (odds ratio, 0.70 [95% CI, 0.45-0.93]; P = .0335). Postoperatively, athletes played a significantly lower percentage of total games in the first season (48.4%; P = .0004) and second season (62.1%; P = .0067) as compared with the preinjury season (78.5%). Player efficiency rating in the first season was 19.3% less than that in the preinjury season (P = .0056). Performance in the second postoperative season was not significantly different versus preinjury.

[RookieStar]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJuQoiXRgSS/?igsh=bGl0ZnZuNHdmNjM=

Dang Paulo!

(Assuming not doctored)

This was last season

A lot of us suspected PBnis taller than 6'10

Zion is 6'6 barefoot i think

[fendilim]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

I’d love this. Been saying this prior to the draft. Works well for both teams.

[dsg2021]

If the Magic are absolutely trying to shed salary (not saying they are) to try and duck the tax, Goga for Knecht straight up would shed $4.3M.

I’d love this. Been saying this prior to the draft. Works well for both teams.

Yeah, Knightro has repeated it a few times and it makes perfect sense. I like it a lot. Gets Mo some more money too, but now we can maybe descend the contract like Suggs. And I think Noah Penda will succeed in a backup small 5 role if there is no good enough Vet Min until Mo’s return.

About the Paolo post, been trying to say Paolo is HIM for a long time now. I always compare him to LeBron James in the sense that no one can really stop him, like physically speaking. Especially in drives. You simply don’t have this with a single other star out there. It’s an issue of stopping Paolo’s strength and size first. Then it’s an issue of stopping Paolo’s skill. Unheard of since LeBron James. Paolo is going to have a bigger impact career than Dwight Howard. He is aiming for the first Orlando title and a statute outside the Kia Center. Franz might make it two statutes.