Bad Landing Spot: Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic are one of the few teams slated to have enough cap space this summer to sign Zach LaVine or any other free agent to a max contract outright.
With how starved they’ve been for a new face for their franchise, it certainly wouldn’t be surprising to see them push all of their chips in to try to land LaVine.
He’s an electrifying scorer, capable of going off for 30+ points — including some SportsCenter-worthy dunks — on any given night. The Magic would have their most exciting and marketable player since Dwight Howard left town.
Aside from higher ticket and jersey sales, though, LaVine won’t bring much else to the Orlando Magic. While it’s true Orlando has been in search of a number one option for over a decade, adding a one-dimensional scorer in LaVine’s mold won’t be enough to make them a title contender, or even a playoff team.
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Adding his scoring would do nothing but ensure that the Orlando Magic enter NBA purgatory, competing for either the last two playoff slots or the picks at the end of the lottery. LaVine is the type of talent that a team should add when they’re a piece or two away from a contending roster.
The Orlando Magic are far off from there and acquiring Zach LaVine might actually mean taking steps backward in their rebuild.