Hennigan got 5 years, Weltman is on year 4

[j-ragg]

A lot of us thought they would truly rebuild the team in their vision and not keep any Hennigan guys. Not saying that would have been a better result, but it would have been interesting to see. Instead, they have basically done absolutely nothing other than draft players and a no brainer trade for Fultz. And the players they do draft Isaac, Bamba, Okeke and Anthony...3 of them are always injured!

Those are false expectations.


From the start, it was clear they wanted to do the Raptors approach. They mentioned it right from the start.

They mentioned they were doing the Raptors approach? Did they explain what that was lol waiting for an expiring superstar to come for a year and get us a ring?

Only thing I really remember them saying in terms of a plan is we're going to evaluate for a year, which has turned to going on four years.

[j-ragg]

To answer the question, they absolutely should be on the hot seat.

We don't have a good team.
We don't have a foundational piece to build around.
We don't have cap flexibility for the foreseeable future.

"but... they're ABOUT to make their splash" save it. Every off-season we've heard it.

[rcklsscognition]

I think they're safe for another extension unfortunately, because of two playoff appearances. Not that they're terrible, they're just bland and uninspiring, and someone else will get blamed this time. I hate the way they draft and don't seem too keen to trade players that seem, at least to me, to obviously be on their way out.

[Max Power]

Their seats needs be to in flames right now as far as I’m concerned. They’ve done nothing on draft night that another GM couldn’t have done. Their moves are almost all lateral or moves that move the needle slightly in the wrong direction. They’re not aggressive, they’re not creative, they don’t even seem inspired. They’re a placeholder front office and that’s the worst kind. In looking back I think Hennigan did a better job, it’s arguable that his roster guys got into the playoffs.

[fendilim]

A lot of us thought they would truly rebuild the team in their vision and not keep any Hennigan guys. Not saying that would have been a better result, but it would have been interesting to see. Instead, they have basically done absolutely nothing other than draft players and a no brainer trade for Fultz. And the players they do draft Isaac, Bamba, Okeke and Anthony...3 of them are always injured!

Those are false expectations.


From the start, it was clear they wanted to do the Raptors approach. They mentioned it right from the start.

They mentioned they were doing the Raptors approach? Did they explain what that was lol waiting for an expiring superstar to come for a year and get us a ring?

Only thing I really remember them saying in terms of a plan is we're going to evaluate for a year, which has turned to going on four years.

They did.

Listen to their press conference AND other interviews. They keep repeating how it suddenly clicked for the Raptors when they traded for high character guys like John Salmons etc, instead of Blowing things up.

[ucfmay2000]

He should be fired now. Terrible front office. Terrible decision making, terrible drafts. He needs to learn from Atlanta, Miami, Denver or Dallas. Magic has been and will be an average team if he is still with magic.

[PrimeThyme]

The curtain was pulled for me on this clown show years ago. Weltman likes to do and say a lot of things to make it appear like he is some forward-thinking, new age, ahead of the pack General Manager who is prepared to change the landscape of the league && how the game is played, but in reality, he is nothing more than a con man who is in over his head.

I haven't been impressed with a single aspect of the basketball operations since he has taken over and the ceiling of this team is as capped as it was the day he got here.

His days are surely numbered, but when Martins will have the final say on the next person we hire, what does it really matter?

[Ducklett]

The curtain was pulled for me on this clown show years ago. Weltman likes to do and say a lot of things to make it appear like he is some forward-thinking, new age, ahead of the pack General Manager who is prepared to change the landscape of the league && how the game is played, but in reality, he is nothing more than a con man who is in over his head.

I haven't been impressed with a single aspect of the basketball operations since he has taken over and the ceiling of this team is as capped as it was the day he got here.

His days are surely numbered, but when Martins will have the final say on the next person we hire, what does it really matter?

He is doing exactly what Martins hired him to do: drive every Magic fan away from the product so they can move to Seattle.

[shadrock]

The curtain was pulled for me on this clown show years ago. Weltman likes to do and say a lot of things to make it appear like he is some forward-thinking, new age, ahead of the pack General Manager who is prepared to change the landscape of the league && how the game is played, but in reality, he is nothing more than a con man who is in over his head.

I haven't been impressed with a single aspect of the basketball operations since he has taken over and the ceiling of this team is as capped as it was the day he got here.

His days are surely numbered, but when Martins will have the final say on the next person we hire, what does it really matter?

He is doing exactly what Martins hired him to do: drive every Magic fan away from the product so they can move to Seattle.

Im 100% behind this team moving away from Orlando if it means we rid ourselves of the snake oil merchant Alex Martins and the filth that is the Devos family and their blood sucking pyramid scheme empire. Revolting people.

[Bensational]

Unless the plan was to make no one care about the Magic so they can move the team out of Orlando, this has been a worse front office than Henny.

Yeah, at least Henny brought in a fleet of interesting young prospects and made some moves (though most felt like they were pressured from the direction of Martins) which kept it interesting from season to season.

WeHam just keep pushing stagnation on us as if they're saying "this is right where we want to be for now... we don't want to rush into becoming a good team, and we think our fans should be happy to keep paying for a trip down a dead end street each season".

[jonbob17]

I'd really be curious as to what ownership's aspirations are. Championships, or just running on that playoff treadmill and keeping butts in the seat and the franchise value high. If it s the latter this management team might be perfect.

[penny_nz]

I can't believe it's been that long, especially when I look at the team and still see Hennys core, lead by an improved Vuc, dragging us to 8th seed...

I still don't see a roster with a corner stone piece, I don't see a roster with a plan, I don't see a roster that suits the modern NBA OR a coach to utilize such a roster (although Coach Cliff has been steady as expected). Thats what makes me the most down on the future of the team, I don't see the vision, and there's no track record of them moving the Earth to make big changes.

[OrlandoSaban]

I just don't think it's even close to getting warm yet. Which is horrible and annoying. We haven't even heard any rumblings of it like we were hearing with Hennigan.

People won't like it, but I really do believe the playoff trips have bought them some time that Hennigan didn't get. If we make yet another trip to the playoffs, I think it would give them even more time.

Rationally speaking, I don't think they should be fired immediately or even at the end of the season but ownership should be putting them on notice that things have to be moving in the right direction. Being lucky that the east sucked for two years while we made the playoffs isn't a good reason to keep them around.

Ummm.. we are 5-2

Lost 1 game due to T-Ross being out and another game with Evan out

In addition, we don't have JI yet

When (if) this team becomes 100% healthy, we will be a dangerous team in the east. What else can you ask for?

[thelead]

I just don't think it's even close to getting warm yet. Which is horrible and annoying. We haven't even heard any rumblings of it like we were hearing with Hennigan.

People won't like it, but I really do believe the playoff trips have bought them some time that Hennigan didn't get. If we make yet another trip to the playoffs, I think it would give them even more time.

Rationally speaking, I don't think they should be fired immediately or even at the end of the season but ownership should be putting them on notice that things have to be moving in the right direction. Being lucky that the east sucked for two years while we made the playoffs isn't a good reason to keep them around.

Ummm.. we are 5-2

Lost 1 game due to T-Ross being out and another game with Evan out

In addition, we don't have JI yet

When (if) this team becomes 100% healthy, we will be a dangerous team in the east. What else can you ask for?

an actual contender at some point. I am one of Fultz' biggest fans and I don't see that 3 developing which he will need to become a star. If not, who is becoming a star on this roster? We have no cap space to sign one either.

Also, we're 5-2 and have beaten nothing but average to bad teams. The sixers CRUSHED us. I would wait until we play some quality teams before boasting about a 5-2 record.

The sixers were the first real test and we failed miserably. We have games against the Bucks, Celtics and Nets coming up soon. We'll see how they do there.

[jonbob17]

Maybe more importantly, Clifford is on year 3. His grinding style will only last so long with players before they lose interest.

[MagicMatic]

Rationally speaking, I don't think they should be fired immediately or even at the end of the season but ownership should be putting them on notice that things have to be moving in the right direction. Being lucky that the east sucked for two years while we made the playoffs isn't a good reason to keep them around.

Ummm.. we are 5-2

Lost 1 game due to T-Ross being out and another game with Evan out

In addition, we don't have JI yet

When (if) this team becomes 100% healthy, we will be a dangerous team in the east. What else can you ask for?

an actual contender at some point. I am one of Fultz' biggest fans and I don't see that 3 developing which he will need to become a star. If not, who is becoming a star on this roster? We have no cap space to sign one either.

Also, we're 5-2 and have beaten nothing but average to bad teams. The sixers CRUSHED us. I would wait until we play some quality teams before boasting about a 5-2 record.

The sixers were the first real test and we failed miserably. We have games against the Bucks, Celtics and Nets coming up soon. We'll see how they do there.

Context matters.

5-2 against bottom dwellers, that are somehow worse than Orlando, doesn’t mean much. We know what this team is capable of being this season... a first round playoff exit without Isaac at best.

I’m actually impressed that some of the fan base still buys the narrative that this team is only minor injuries away from competing.

This is still Hennigan’s roster for the most part. I’m not giving them credit until the core of the offense is gone.

[thelead]

Maybe more importantly, Clifford is on year 3. His grinding style will only last so long with players before they lose interest.

eh... he's pretty soft. He is no Thibs or Stan. I don't see him yelling at any of his players.

[Magic_Kingdom]

Beneath the fool's gold of barely making the playoffs, their seats should be very hot.

1) The Magic have the 8th-highest payroll in the NBA. Are they the 8th best team? Not even close. Are they better than the Raptors, Mavs, Heat, Nuggets or Celtics, who all have lower payrolls? Obviously not. This is one of the first things owners have to examine when deciding whether management is doing a good job. What product have they delivered in exchange for $135 million of the owners' money. Even worse -- there is no flexibility next year, either. The Magic free up very little money after this season.

2) The future is not bright. There is no young superstar on the roster. (There is no all-star, period). There is no core of promising young talent. So you can't excuse the bloated team payroll by arguing that the return on investment will come 2 or 3 years from now.

3) The Draft. If Weltman and Hammond have made up their minds that they are not going to trade anyone, which apparently is their plan, then they sure as hell better draft well. And yet their 4-year draft grade has to be an F-minus. At the end of this season, Jonathan "Mr. Glass" Isaac will have played a grand total of 136 out of 309 possible games. 136 games in 4 seasons! Please don't tell me he has star potential or All-Defensive Team potential, which I see on this board all the time. He cannot block shots from the bench. The only elite skill he has is being injured. And if you've watched the NBA long enough you know it's not going to change. He is not going to miraculously become healthy and durable next season. It just doesn't work that way. It's not one injury or one season -- it's his first 4 years in the league. He is what he is. So Welt & Hamm got a do-over in the next draft with another #6 pick, and who did they take? Mo Bamba. Bamba looks like he will be out of the league in a few years. If by Year 3 a player still looks lost when/if he gets on the court while racking up DNP/CD's without explanation, then he sucks. Period. And in their third draft they really learned their lesson by taking a player who just had ACL surgery and couldn't play at all his rookie year, Chuma Okeke. Now he's finally playing in Year 2 except oops, no he's not, out several weeks with a knee injury. Shocker, who saw that coming? It might not matter so much if they were making trades and signing free agents to improve the team, but they're not. They literally re-signed and kept every Hennigan player and made garbage first-round draft picks for 4 years.

[Furinkazan]

Dumb and dumber I told you that four years ago.You wouldn’t listen.

[IllMagic04]

I knew after year 1 they were clueless. Seats should be hot but I doubt it.

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