Get 'em while their Cheap: 5 guys the magic have the best chance of getting RIGHT NOW!

To start off, welcome to the first post from the viewtiful dick page. This is the first of many to come. But enough about me, back to the blog. The Orlando Magic, the team that has seem to be in eternal failure since Dwight Howard left way back in 2012. Now there's not to say there has been bright spots.. no, actually there really hasn't been any bright spots. The Magic, year after year, have gone through a repetitive process of drafting prospect hoping they pan out, with a continuous end result of disappointment. This year, however, does seem to show some change. Yes, the Magic ARE 4 games under .500 with just a 3 game improvement compare to last year, but this team hasn't been an exact mirror of the team on the court last year. Like it or not, Coach Steve Clifford's emphasis of defense has rubbed off on this team, and Vets like Nikola Vucevic, Terrence Ross, D.J. Augustin have stepped up for this team with Aaron Gordon, Jonathan Issac, Evan Fournier, and Jonathon Simmons showing flashes of improvement. Even young player Mo Bamba and Wesley Iwundu have showing spurts of talent but as this season goes on, I see this team returning back to bad habits. So as a Magic Fan, who has seen this annoying repetition of good starts followed by perpetual choking, I feel that RIGHT NOW is the time for the Magic to stop standing pat like a nervous middle schooler at their first dance. So these are 5 players I think the magic should go after. Now, these aren't guys I think are gonna be the final solution to the magic's defense problems, nor do I think these are the guys that are gonna be the solution to all the magics problems. I just believe that these guys are the best fits for the magic moving forward right now, whether it be in a future of championships or a future of rebuilding.

1. Markelle Fultz

Now I know most Magic and Basketball fans don't think the magic have the assets needed to acquire a guy like Fultz, even with the past few months being filled with controversy concerning the young star and his health. I don't blame most of you for thinking like that. The Magic are 27th in the league in Points per Game and 24th in Field Goals Made per Game, but a stat that is very overlooked is that the magic ARE 13th in assist. So adding a playmaker to a team like the 76ers, who are already 3rd in assist and have scores the likes of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Jimmy Butler, wouldn't be that much of a stretch...if the Magic matches the asking price. Now, looking at a team like the Magic trading for Fultz, it seems like the only way they could acquire a guy like Fultz if they trade a multiple roster players, a prospect, 1 first round or MULTIPLE second round picks. The biggest eye catcher being Aaron Gordon, obviously. Now, like most Magic fans, i'm not THE biggest fan of this, but let me explain how this could work for both teams. When looking at the Sixers, they have every starting spot covered with a solid player. Even Wilson Chandler has done a good job as 5th guy, but what's there to say that the Sixers wouldn't mind an uprgrade at Power Forward(or maybe even a sixth man who can take it to the rim)? Trading Gordon, Briscoe and first or a few second rounder for Chandler and Fultz would put both teams around the same level in cap, and if Clifford does want to emphasize defense then bringing in a experienced vet will help with that. This trade also saves any issues of "future point guard's" for both teams as it is not a stretch to believe the Magic's pick will end up in the Top 10 of the lottery AT LEAST. But once again, this only works if the Sixers drop their price of Fultz this low.

2. John Wall

This is another player probably FAR from the Magic's grasp, but it's also another guy who is probable. How I see it, if the Magic want to make the big change and become at least a playoff team, they need this guy. John Wall is a Flat Out BALLER and he seems like the type of guy to not only become a voice in the locker room for this squad, but he also has the potential to elevate the scoring other core pieces that end with the team post trade deadline. How I see it, the trade could only workout two ways, the Magic could reluctantly make a trade in which they move Gordon, Jerian Grant and a first rounder for Wall and the return of former Magic big man Dwight Howard. The other trade is more beneficial for both squads. The trade would be Ross, Augustin, Grant, a first and second rounder to the Wizards for Wall, Jeff Green, and Thomas Bryant. The trade gives the Wizards 3 vets to work with the young core of the team, with 2 (more than likely) high draft picks that can turn into prospect. The Magic get a big offense piece to help them compete along with a vet to help the young player and a prospect in Bryant that can turn into a pretty good bench player or a future trade piece. But once again, this could only happen if the Wizards get to this point.

3 J.R. Smith and/or Rodney Hood

Now, from reading my future post you will learn that I'm not the biggest Evan Fournier fan. I don't hate the guy, I just feel as if he's a failed prospect that the magic seem to hold onto for hope. There's never been a big piece of his game in which I felt like could carry this team. He's a pretty decent playmaker but a overhyped 3-point shooter, and the more I watch him play the more I feel like he's a point guard who doesn't have the handle to take on other points but also doesn't have the advantage most modern day shooting guards have. I can't lie, he can make 3's when the teams already rolling, and he has had his shared moments of clutchness here and there. However, when I look at how much this team has grown this year, Fournier just sticks out like a sore thumb to me. With this teams new strenghths and the leagues slow transformation to focus on the 3-point game, the thought of a Evan Fournier for a J.R. Smith trade doesn't seem to far-fetched. The only negative factor in this is J.R. Smith, knowing that a player who was former contender would probably want to go to another contender. Maybe the Magic could sweeten the deal with a young prospect to get another piece to help at shooting guard Rodney Hood. After seeing the magic move Simmons to point tonight, it doesn't seem like that bad of an idea for magic.

4. Anyone on the Lakers

Seems like a match made in heaven right. 2 young struggling teams trying to find the pieces to compete, or at least that was the original thought until Lebron James transform the Lakers into a contender. Still, both teams could figure out a move to improve both teams. When looking at the Magic's run, it seems obvious that some players are producing and some aren't. This is only troubling because those player that aren't are starters. Now like I said before the Magic probably wouldn't move Aaron Gordon or Jonathan Issac for the sake of securing their future, but if there mindset does change to a competitive state, then what's to say the Magic don't move Issac and Melvin Frazier for Josh Hart and Lance Stephenson. Magic get another vet and a possible future shooting guard/small forward, this would also open up playing time for Ross in Orlando and prospect in LA. But only time will tell what the magic will do.

5. Draymond Green

Now this one doesn't seem at all possible right now, but it's a crazy idea that could be understood if you look at it through a fans lens. The Magic are a team that wants to emphasize defense, the Warriors are a team that is going through a bit of a struggle and it's no lie that they are starting to get on each others world. In a world in which both the Warriors and Magic have the cap to make this trade, the Magic send Gordon to the Warriors for Green. Gordon is a young player, it seems that a player of his caliber playing with the likes of Curry, Durant, and Thompson would thrive. For Draymond, he comes to a young team as a leader and a defense monster. It seems that a player like him could help the youth of Orlando improve on defense. And hey, there's no saying he wouldn't get shots.

Now there are a number of players who could also help the magic. Joe Harris is a sniper at the three when he gets the looks, Robin Lopez could upgrade to a team with a little more fight, and it seems like if the Magic ever wanted to bring back Hezonja, it wouldn't be impossible. But hey, I'm just one of the thousands of magic fans who is tired of the same old crap. Until next time, I see you then readers.