Knightro wrote:I think everyone can agree the Magic need more playmaking. That isn't really up for a whole lot of debate.
Whether that's through external additions or just development of Paolo and Franz, I think everyone would pretty much unanimously agree that more ball movement, better passing, fewer turnovers are all paramount for this team offensively.
I think where the road diverges for some is specifically *how* that happens, especially when it comes to the player acquisition front.
A lot of people understandably believe that the Magic need a lead guard to improve the playmaking. That is the most clear and obvious deficiency on the roster and it appears there will be several possibilities on that front, both via trade and free agency.
My push back on that is this...
Does it have to be a point guard?
Brandon Ingram and Paul George are both A+ playmakers on the wing. Ingram in particular was 24th in the entire NBA in APG. You narrow it down to non guards and Ingram was 5th in the NBA behind Jokic, LeBron, Sabonis and Giannis.
He's a great playmaking wing, one of the best in the league, and would immediately join this roster as the best playmaker for others on the entire team. Given his age and experience, he's a much better playmaker than Paolo or Franz (for the time being, maybe they surpass him as they get older).
On top of that, he can score 25 a night and give a sometimes punchless offense some more juice that someone like a Tyus Jones wouldn't be able to provide.
All I'm saying is that if the opportunity presents itself to add a great playmaker to the team and the cost isn't prohibative, I am willing to consider it and perhaps even jump on it even if that player isn't a traditional point guard.
Story time!
I have a friend who leaves and breathes basketball. He contributes regularly to NBA podcasts and his every waking moment is consumed by watching as many games as possible. He is one of those "I'm watching 5 games at once" types on a given night.
Anyways, he knows I love the Magic and late this past season I asked him to do a deep dive on the Magic and what he thought of them. A lot of his observations were rather run of the mill: Paolo is the player we need to build around. Franz is solid and efficient but his current game is extremely limited (he keeps saying Franz needs an offseason to round out his game so defenses can't shut him down as easily but never has time to work on it). That their floor spacing is abysmal but their defense is some of the best coached he has seen in a while. All that aside, he said something to me one day that reshaped the whole way I watched the Magic from the All Star Break on:
"The Magic are so good defensively, that THE stat to watch every single night and WILL determine whether they win or lose:
Turnovers.
He told me to ignore 3 point attempts and percentage, ignore free throws (which was hard to do but I acquiesced), and try to avoid asking daily how in the world Gary Harris was still in the starting lineup. He said the Magic were young, and thus prone to a ton of turnovers. They wound up 7th WORST in the league, surrounded by teams that were in the lottery. But if they could just hold that single stat in check enough to be even close to their opponent, they would win.
It really changed my worldview. While posters were hooting and hollering about shooting and playmaking, I was cringing with every bad pass that went out of bounds, every offensive foul, every steal from Wendell Carter's injured hands. And you know what? It was insane how correct he was. We'd watch games together and if the Magic were careless with the ball early he would proclaim the game a loss unless they buttoned turnovers up (even against abysmal teams).
Cue the postseason. The Magic were playing the Cavs and he observed that for all their issues, Coach Moseley had done a magnificent job preparing the team. He said with how much the Magic were clicking on all cylinders, they would be second round-bound unless one thing happened: They'd narrowly lose in a 7 game series if Paolo Banchero led the entire NBA in turnovers.
Now a ton of things contribute to a loss, and Franz going 1-15 can't be ignored, but I'll be damned if Paolo Banchero didn't lead all postseason rosters with turnovers.
https://www.espn.com/nba/stats/player/_/stat/turnovers/table/offensive/sort/avgTurnovers/dir/descNow the good news: My friend said Paolo is a future monster, to a point where that one turnover stat is the only thing holding him back. He is SUPER high on the Magic, as replacing the dead weight with actual players and working with Paolo is now significantly easier as they have identified his kryptonite, which is unsurprisingly the team's as well. He is less high on Franz, but said if they get a solid #2 they really could win the championship.
