Goodbye, James Augustine. We hardly knew ye.

The Orlando Sentinel reports the Orlando Magic waived the second-year power forward "as expected." The move means the Magic have 12 players with guaranteed contracts on their roster. They'll sign another player, possibly Adonal Foyle, to meet the league minimum of 13 players.

Of course, it's also possible the Magic waived Augustine to free roster space for a potential trade, but given the relatively small size of his contract (approximately $900,000 $800,000), I find that scenario unlikely.

As for Augustine, I imagine he'll catch on in the D-League or overseas. He's young (24), tall (6'10"), and fairly athletic. He never struck me as a particularly talented player, but he did play hard and appeared to want to earn his minutes.

I'm contractually obligated* to point out that the Magic selected Augustine 41st overall in the 2006 NBA draft, one pick ahead of Cavaliers three-point assassin Daniel Gibson and six picks ahead of Jazz rebound machine Paul Millsap.

UPDATED: the Sentinel updated its report. Among the newly added details:

Magic General Manager Otis Smith said he would like Foyle to return and would speak to his agent, Lon Babby, in the next few days.

"Adonal's a big body, he knows how to play," Smith said. "We'lll [sic] see where it goes."

[....]

The Magic had until today to either re-sign the 6 foot-10 Augustine to a guaranteed contract of about $800,000 or waive him.

I think the Magic would be better off looking to the D-League for potential third-string bigs. Matt from Ridiculous Upside listed Rod Benson, Carlos Powell, and Chris Alexander as the best such available players as of yesterday. Will Otis at least consider reaching out to a youngster with upside? Well, probably not, but he should keep his options open.

*: Not really.

Ht: PVBFan at Denton's board.

The Spurs re-signed Kurt Thomas, the forward/center whom the Magic coveted at the deadline. Meanwhile, a day after acquiring combo guard Keyon Dooling from Orlando, the Nets sent backup point guard (and object of Magic fans' affection) Marcus Williams to the Warriors for a future first-round pick.

Oh, and the Magic's chances of re-signing Carlos Arroyo -- already a long shot -- took a big hit when he tore a leg muscle during an Olympic qualifying tournament.

But Javaris Crittenton, long connected to the Magic in trade rumors, is still in play. The Grizzlies' young combo guard is likely the odd-man-out in Memphis, which wants to focus on developing O.J. Mayo, Mike Conley, and Kyle Lowry. I think Crittenton would be a home-run acquisition for Otis Smith and the Magic. For one thing, he's tall (6'05"). For another, his presence would make both J.J. Redick and Keith Bogans more expendable than they already are... assuming they weren't the guys dealt for Crittenton in the first place. Finally, it would mean fewer minutes for Anthony Johnson, the Magic's 34-year-old current backup, whose talent level befits that of a third-stringer.

Could Mikki Moore be an option? The Kings spent their full mid-level on the veteran power forward last summer, but might look to unload him to free-up playing time for youngsters Spencer Hawes, Shelden Williams, and Jason Thompson. Kings fan pookeyguru, whom you may know from his participation in the Sactown Royalty community, would swap Moore for Redick and Brian Cook.

I still support the idea of swapping Redick and Cook for Jeff Foster, but I doubt the Pacers would part with him now that they've dealt Jermaine O'Neal to Toronto for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, and riff-raff.

Maybe we overestimate the Magic's need for another player at the power positions. After all, Tony Battie will make his return this season, and figures to steal some minutes from Adonal Foyle (at center) and Rashard Lewis/Cook (at power forward). And Marcin Gortat, who played in more post-season games than regular-season ones, showed promise. But you'll forgive me for feeling nervous about a big-man rotation that includes Lewis, Battie, Gortat, Foyle, and James Augustine.

What's the Magic's biggest area of need? Whom should they target to fill that need?

The Orlando Magic reached an agreement to sign free-agent guard Anthony Johnson, who played for them during the 1999/2000 season, as seen above.

File photo by Don Frazier, the Associated Press

The Orlando Magic signed veteran point guard Anthony Johnson to a two-year deal. Denton and Schmitz have the scoop. Schmitz also says that the team expects backup center Adonal Foyle to return, although he will probably not sign for another month. The 2008/09 roster is indeed taking shape, and there could be another deal in the works, as the Magic are still trying to acquire point guard Javaris Crittenton from the Memphis Grizzlies.

Only that last bit of news excites me. Johnson will turn 34 before the season starts and is, at best, a third-string point guard on a contending team. The Magic need to find a younger, taller option to lead the second unit. And as much as we all admire Foyle's hustle and character, he's too much of an offensive liability to effectively back-up Dwight Howard.

Based on today's news, I expect next season's depth chart to resemble the following (inactive players in italics):

The roster is loaded with bigs, so I expect the team to jettison at least one of them (Cook?) before the season starts. So far, this roster isn't a huge improvement over last year's, which won 52 games and a division title, so maybe we shouldn't complain.

Maybe.

• The folks at Golden State of Mind take a look back at Mickael Pietrus' career in the Bay. The consensus from Warriors fans, as best I can tell, is that Pietrus is a likable and talented player with a low basketball I.Q. Also, check out the comments for some questions as to how to refer to a single Magic, Heat, or Jazz player. One argument that's always annoyed me is that we should refer to Magic players as "Magicians." If that were true, the Magic would not be the Magic; they'd be the Magicians. Ditto for Utah Jazzmen and Miami Heatians.
• For his part, Doug Smith of the Toronto Star thinks Pietrus "is a backup in Orlandoland" and doesn't believe Air France to be a significant upgrade over Maurice Evans.
• Ira Winderman wrote yesterday that most every NBA General Manager left the Pro Summer League by the time play began on the camp's last day, meaning the Magic's practice facility was nearly completely empty and, in Winderman's words, "an eerie spectacle." It's probably just as well, because if the boxscore is any indication, yesterday's Magic/Heat matchup was ugly. The teams combined to shoot 35% from the field. Heat rookie Mario Chalmers lead all players with 2 assists. Magic point guard Cliff Hammonds shot 1-of-10 for 4 points. The good news? Courtney Lee lead all players with 30 points, including 12-of-13 from the foul line. Marcin Gortat and James Augustine added 12 boards apiece for the Magic. Brendan from Believing in Magic was pleased with the team's performance this week, and especially impressed with Lee and Gortat.
• Yesterday, rumors about the Pistons' seeking to acquire Tracy McGrady from the Rockets circulated. I am so glad the Free Press debunked those rumors. The thought of the Pistons getting that good... ugh.

Thank goodness it's Friday. One week until The Dark Knight hits theaters. Without hyperbole, I can assure you I've waited my entire life to see this movie. In fact, by this time next week, I will have already seen it.

Batman rules.

• Some summer-league notes...

  • Courtney Lee impressed DraftExpress with his performance in Orlando's losing effort against the Oklahoma City Thundercats on Tuesday. From Jonathan Givony's breakdown:

    Lee was outstanding in his own right, though, doing a fantastic job all game long utilizing the pick and roll, and being incredible aggressive putting the ball on the floor and making his way to the rim. What was interesting was that he started off the game looking more to facilitate and play his role within Orlando's half-court offense, picking and choosing his spots wisely and not forcing the issue in the least bit. As the game wore on and things deteriorated for his team he started to take over much more, finishing the game was an impressive 27 points on 8/14 shooting.

    His range appears to easily extend beyond the NBA arc already, and he looked very comfortable spotting up and knocking down all 3 of the attempts he took as the ball rotated in his direction. He also drove and finished with both hands equally well (always using the glass intelligently, or sometimes with a crafty floater) and did not hesitate in the least bit to pull-up off the dribble from mid-range if his defender cheated and went underneath the screen.

    Lee seems talented, intelligent, and assertive. Nifty. Givony also praises Lee's defense in the piece.

  • Ridiculous Upside ranks Kevin Kruger as the fifth-best free agent in the entire camp. Matt likes Kruger's ability to distribute, and says the team's coaches have "respond[ed] well to his effort." I think Kruger has a shot at making the team as its third-string point guard.
  • In 22 minutes yesterday, James Augustine shot 7-of-9 from the foul line. In 156 career NBA minutes, Augustine has shot 4-of-8 from the foul line. Gotta love the summer league.
• I won't pretend to understand the first, say, 85% of this study, conducted by David Joyner of Little White Stats, but this paragraph from the concluding statements makes sense to me:

  The notably demonstrated fact is that the differential within the third quarter (that is, only in the third quarter, not through the first three quarters) is statistically the most accurate (of the four quarters) in predicting the final game differential. This serves as possible early evidence that the third quarter may be the most important quarter in an NBA game.

  Yup.

• Brian Schmitz has a wrap-up of Mickael Pietrus' introductory press conference yesterday. Check out a photo of the conference, which includes Pietrus holding his no. 20 Magic jersey, by clicking here.

While you're hangin' out, consider responding to erivera's rankings of Eastern Conference teams as they stand today.

Mickael "Air France" Pietrus, seen here taking flight over Kyle Korver, has agreed to terms with the Orlando Magic on a multi-year deal.

File photo by George Widman, the Associated Press

Earlier today, I discussed with another blogger how the Magic's inactivity this summer made me nervous. The moves some of the teams behind them have made -- the Wizards' re-signing their two big-name free agents, the Heat's adding the draft's most talented player, the Raptors' acquiring a dominant low-post defender, to name a few -- coupled with the Magic's not making a peep in free agency just made me... uneasy. I didn't like that we were just sitting back, watching other teams make moves to get better.

The Magic got proactive today by agreeing to sign swingman Mickael Pietrus, which is curious, because he doesn't address either of the Magic's biggest needs: depth at point guard and at the power positions. He lacks the ballhandling and decision-making skills to play point-forward, and although Pietrus, 6'07", played power forward in Don Nelson's nutty, anything-goes offense in Golden State, can't play that spot in Orlando, not with Brian Cook (6'09"), Rashard Lewis, and James Augustine (both 6'10") in front of him.

But, despite not addressing Needs 1 and 1-A, Pietrus makes sense for the Magic. He's an upgrade over their incumbent starter, Keith Bogans, and he should make an immediate impact. The signing also means J.J. Redick is likely on his way out. Already the Magic's best trade asset, he now projects to sit at the back end of Orlando's still sub-par backcourt rotation. He, combined with a future draft pick or two, should net the Magic a solid player at either point guard or power forward. The Magic will look to bolster Whichever position the nigh-inevitable Redick trade doesn't address through free agency with the low-level exception. Of course, they wouldn't have to trade Redick if they drafted a power forward in the first place...

A final note about Pietrus: he's coming off a season in which he regressed. His per-36-minute scoring decreased (14.9-12.9), as did his effective field goal percentage (56.7-52.5). Maybe it's wishful thinking on my part, but I believe Pietrus' problem was focus-related. Getting away from Nelson, with whom he had a sour relationship, might do wonders for his confidence and performance.

You may remember this post from May, in which I tried to navigate the NBA's salary cap to see what the Magic could do this summer in free agency. Now that we're closer to the beginning of the free-agent signing period (Wednesday, July 9th), I thought I'd take another look at it. I've presented my findings in a Q-and-A format. For this post, I consulted Larry Coon's NBA Salary Cap F.A.Q., Storyteller's Contracts, ESPN's 2008 NBA Free Agent list, and the Orlando Magic's official roster page. We hope you find this guide helpful.

Question: How many players do the Magic have under contract next season, and what are they owed?

Answer: Currently, the Magic have 11 players under contract, owed a total of $60,553,339 next season. While the league has yet to release its official salary-cap data, we can say with absolute certainty that the Magic are over the salary cap. Here's how everything breaks down by player...

Note: for this table, "Age" refers to a player's age as of October 31st, 2008, when we expect the NBA season to begin.

... and by position...

Make the jump to read the rest of the Q-and-A.

Continue reading this post »

Free agency is here! Everybody freak out!

• Free-agency coverage abounds in the Sentinel today.
  • Tim Povtak lists Golden State Warriors swingman Mickael Pietrus (more on him below), Chicago Bulls point guard Chris Duhon, and Los Angeles Clippers swingman Corey Maggette as the Magic's primary targets.
  • Povtak also has a list of the NBA's top free agents, which includes Clippers forward Elton Brand, Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, and Warriors guard Baron Davis. Most of the guys on this list are either out of the Magic's price range or off their radar completely. If Kwame Brown ever plays for Orlando, I might throw up.
  • Brian Schmitz received word from Bill McCandless, who represents Pietrus, that he expects the Magic to contact him regarding his client. Pietrus' calling cards are defense and three-point shooting, so it's easy to see why Stan Van Gundy and Magic management would be interested in him. If the Magic's top priority is to replace Maurice Evans in the starting lineup, Pietrus is probably the best option. For more on Pietrus, check out...
    • this ridiculous weakside block of the Kings' Kevin Martin, which made waves in the basketblogosphere.
    • this criticism of Pietrus' work ethic from 3QC fave Tim Kawakami:

      When Pietrus is hurt, he usually takes about 2 or 3 games longer than any other Warrior mainstay would in a similar circumstance. He's right at 3 games longer right now, by the way.

      He has now missed 11 games this season for various reasons -- all valid enough -- but that's 2 more than Stephen Jackson has missed, and that includes Jackson's 7-game suspension to start the campaign.

      Pietrus has missed 5 more games than Andris Biedrins has missed, and, yes, Biedrins had an appendectomy in the middle of the season.

      That's not a good stat. That's about normal for Pietrus' career, too.

      Those facts should raise some red-flags for the Magic

  • In less exciting news, Schmitz reports that the Magic have told free-agent forward Pat Garrity that they will not offer him a contract until later this summer, if at all. It's a wise move on their part to hold-off, yeah. If they make a splash in free-agency -- unlikely -- they might need a cheap 15th man, and Pat might be that man. But if the team signs him, even for a year at the smallest possible salary, Magic fans will revolt. Of that I am sure. Despite Garrity's long stay in Orlando, he hasn't drawn a large fan following, largely due to his lack of productivity. He should have ended his playing days long ago.
• As expected, Magic draftee Courtney Lee signed a four-year, $6 million deal.
• Yesterday, I speculated that the source Tim Povtak cited as saying Corey Maggette could return to Orlando was none other than Maggette's agent, Rob Pelinka. User "Orltragic07" at Denton's board speculates the source could be Bo Outlaw, a former Maggette teammate and current Magic Community Ambassador. You'll have to scroll down to find his post; I can't seem to find a way to link it directly.
• The annual Pepsi Pro Summer League, which the Magic hosts, starts next Monday. The Bulls, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, New Jersey Nets, and Seattle SuperSonics will all send teams filled with players hoping to make the opening-day roster. Click here for the summer-league roster page for all teams. A few notes from Orlando's squad:
  • James Augustine, Marcin Gortat, and Courtney Lee are the three "real" Magic players on the team. Lee will wear uniform no. 32, the same one he wore at Western Kentucky. If he chooses to wear that number in the regular-season, he'll be only the third Magic player in 20 years to do so. The others were Otis Smith and Shaquille O'Neal.
  • Kevin Kruger, who played on last year's summer-league team, will also play on this year's.
  • Temple guard Mark Tyndale, who went undrafted last Thursday, also made the Magic's summer-league team. He was among the five shooting guards the Magic worked-out before the draft. The week before the draft, stat guru Ed Weiland, of HOOPSANALYST, ranked Tyndale the third-best shooting guard in the entire 2008 draft class, behind O.J. Mayo and Chris Douglas-Roberts; he rates Lee, whom the Magic selected 22nd overall, to be the 6th-best.
  • Like last year, you can watch each game online free.

That's all for today. Leave your free-agency suggestions in the comments or the FanPosts.

I updated this post to reflect the fact that the Magic lost Grant Hill in free agency last summer, which I somehow overlooked earlier. Thanks to commenter OVERWADED for bringing that serious oversight to my attention. Additionally, I updated the list after the jump to reflect the Phoenix Suns' potential interest in one of Orlando's current free agents.

With all the draft nonsense last week, it was easy for us at 3QC to lose sight of the fact that the NBA's free-agency period starts Tuesday.

So I'd like to thank Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (via Dee Gugel of the Orlando Sentinel) for shocking us out of our stupor with today's Florida Sports Buzz feature. Apparently, the Heat have their eyes on some of our free agents (emphases Jackson's):

Riley said he still might trade for a point guard, with Memphis (Kyle Lowry, among others) considered in play. Otherwise, the Heat believes it can find a stopgap starter from a free agent group including Chris Duhon, Carlos Arroyo, Keyon Dooling, Anthony Johnson, Tyronn Lue, Jannero Pargo and Anthony Carter. And the Heat likes restricted free agent Sebastian Telfair, though Minnesota can match any offer.

[....]

[Heat GM Pat] Riley pointed to the potential to lure a player from ''teams that have three or four unrestricted free agents.'' Keep an eye on Orlando (Arroyo, Dooling, Maurice Evans) and Golden State [...]

Last year, the Magic only lost two three players to free agency: little-used point guard Travis Diener to Indiana; more notably, backup power forward Darko Milicic to Memphis; and swingman Grant Hill to Phoenix. Nobody expected Diener or Hill to come back, and although Milicic's departure surprised plenty of people, we should have expected the Magic to ignore him if it meant focusing on signing Rashard Lewis, which they did.

But the circumstances surrounding its summer -- limited cap space, high expectations entering next season, the higher quality of its own free agents -- will magnify the impact of any Orlando's free-agent losses, especially if they eventually sign with archrival Miami.

What follows after the jump is a list of Orlando's free agents, what they can provide, and which teams might be interested in them.

Continue reading this post »

The Magic's official draft party, featuring the Magic Dancers and notable play-by-play guys, takes place tonight at NBA City, which you can reach by phoning 407.NBA.CITY (407.622.2489). If you'd rather stay home, you can still catch a live feed of the Magic's "war room" via the team's website.

• Here are my three favorite questions and answers from Brian Schmitz's live chat yesterday. They're juicy:

  Chris: Are the Magic trying to trade for a second-round pick?

  Brian Schmitz: Otis said they are exploring trying to pick up a seocnd-rounder, a high one.

  [....]

  Gene: What are the chances Otis packages Hedo and JJ to bring in an elite shooting guard (like Rip Hamilton maybe)?

  Brian Schmitz: Otis said they are not trading their core players, which includes Hedo specficially "unless a deal knocks our socks off."

  [....]

  Chris: Brian, Can you just give us a run down on what Otis said in the Press Conf. if anything? Do you Tim, or Denton have any kind of feel as to where the Magic are going with their 1st pick and also what's the chances of OTis aquiring a 2nd rounder???

  Brian Schmitz: Otis basically did the song and dance today, very vague. Said they will proably keep the No. 22 pick. Could add a second-round pick. He likes [Courtney] Lee, [Marreese] Speights, [Jason]Thompson, [JaVale] McGee, [Darrell] Arthur, [J.J.] Hickson and R[obin] Lopez. Does not care for [Roy] Hibbert and says CDR [Chris Douglas-Roberts] is falling.

  Good for Otis not wanting to trade Hedo, although that's a subject I'll cover in-depth sometime after all the draft stuff calms down. Also nice to know that Roy Hibbert is not on the Magic's board. Dude's a stiff.

• Marc D'Amico posted this interesting piece about Otis Smith's draft philosophy on the Magic's official website. First, examine this quote from the article:

  Smith made clear that the team isn't necessarily drafting by position. The Magic seem adamant on the fact that they will address their pick first by talent and then by position.

  That's nice, but a few paragraphs later, Smith gives us this gem:

  "For me to sit down face-to-face is huge," Smith said. "I put a lot of value on the sit-down time, probably more than I do on putting them in the gym and watch them hoist up jumpers."

  I don't get it. First, the Magic say they'll take the best (ie most talented) player on the board, but then Smith says, in a roundabout way, that he values character just as much as he values talent. Which is it, Otis?

• The Sentinel has this illuminating feature on Magic Assistant GM Dave Twardzik, who spent this past Thanksgiving Day eating reindeer sausage in Anchorage, Alaska. A quote from Twardzik, the Magic's chief talent evaluator:

  Twardzik has seen some amazing athletes, but high on his scouting checklist is "basketball IQ. We look for guys who have a great feel for the game and make right decisions," he said. "We don't put a lot of emphasis on statistics. It's more what we see on the floor."

  I could have told you the Magic don't put a lot of emphasis on statistics. They selected power forward James Augustine in the second round of the 2005 NBA Draft despite the fact that Paul Millsap, another power forward who happens to be a rebounding machine, was still on the board.

• Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via NetsDaily) the New Jersey Nets are sold on forward/center Joey Dorsey and will use the 40th pick on him if he's still available. Dorsey's the sort of rebounding/shot-blocking beast who'd be the perfect frontcourt complement to Dwight Howard. If the Magic want him, as they should, they'll need to trade for a pick better than 40th. Portland has two picks and Seattle has one, which is interesting because Tim Povtak reported just last month the Magic discussed trading with either of those teams for a second-round pick. Let the rumor-mongering commence.

Look for an open thread in which to discuss the day's events at 10:30. We'll play it by ear from there.