Does This Trade Make Sense For The Orlando Magic/New York Knicks?
We can talk about the Knicks very briefly before we talk about the Magic, but the simple answer from the Knicks perspective is why not!? They get Daniel Theis for free basically, so why not be a part of this trade! They could even throw in another second-round pick if they wanted to feel generous, but the Knicks should absolutely want to be a part of this three-team deal because they get a free player out of it who can contribute to them immediately in their playoff push.
Now to the Magic… where things can get a little complicated. Ultimately, Orlando’s front-office needs to realize that while they could still hypothetically make the playoffs this year, they will once again get beaten down by one of the top teams in the East, leaving the Magic in an endless cycle of losing in the playoffs.
Everybody knows this team just does not have the firepower to be able to compete with the best of the best in this league, so why not try to rebuild again and get a lot of value for your All-Star center who is now in his 30’s? Nikola Vucevic has played like one of the best centers in the league this year, which is why they could potentially look to get more value for him, but getting two future first-round picks is very valuable and gives the Magic the ability to build a young core moving forward.
Cole Anthony was putting together a great rookie season before getting injured and with other young talents in Chuma Okeke, Mo Bamba and Markelle Fultz, the Magic definitely have some potential to grow into a solid, young team, but it will take time. The good news for them is that they have plenty of time to wait and build a sustainable core of the future since there is no championship window present for this team at the moment.
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The Magic can take their time building their team of the future and Vucevic may not be the only high-level asset they can leverage in trade talks. Evan Fournier is in the final year of his contract and definitely would hold a lot of value on the trade market, as would Terrence Ross and Aaron Gordon who are still in the midst of multi-year deals.
This trade is definitely something the Magic should be interested in, but they should try to at least get one more first-round pick out of this deal, especially if they are receiving no young talents in return. As much as it main pain Orlando fans to hear, trading Vucevic is the best thing this organization can do to try and rebuild correctly once again.
