The Magic have acquired 30-year old forward Hakim Warrick from the Bobcats for 25-year old forward Josh McRoberts.  Warrick has played in 28 games (14 starts) for the Bobcats and Hornets this year and he is averaging 17.5 minutes, 6.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Warrick has now played in 526 games (108 starts) in his first eight years in the NBA and he is averaging 20.2 minutes, 9.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  McRoberts played in 41 games (3 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 16.7 minutes, 3.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  Although minor, I like this deal for the Magic as Warrick is a better player than McRoberts is.

UPDATE:  (2/22/2013) – The Magic have waived Hakim Warrick.

The Orlando Magic have dealt 28-year old guard J.J. Redick, 27-year old PF/C Gustavo Ayon and 24-year old point guard Ishmael Smith to the Milwaukee Bucks.  In return, the Magic have acquired 30-year old guard Beno Udrih, 20-year old forward Tobias Harris and 21-year old shooting guard Doron Lamb.

Beno Udrih will take over J.J. Redick’s old role as the first guard off the bench for the Magic.  He played in 39 games (0 starts) for the Bucks this year and he averaged 18.4 minutes, 6.7 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.  Udrih has now played in 601 games (234 starts) in his first nine years in the NBA and he is averaging 23.4 minutes, 9.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.  Tobias Harris was a first round pick in the 2011 NBA Draft for the Bucks.  He played in 28 games (14 starts) for the Bucks this year and he averaged 11.6 minutes, 4.9 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  He has now played in 70 games (23 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 11.5 minutes, 4.9 rebounds, 2.3 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  Harris can play both forward spots and I expect that he will have a much bigger role with the Magic than he had with the Bucks.  Doron Lamb was a second round pick of the Bucks in the 2012 NBA Draft.  Lamb played in 23 games (0 starts) for the Bucks this year and he averaged 12.2 minutes, 3.4 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Lamb was only shooting 34.7% from the floor, 25% from three point range and 53.3% from the free throw line this year for the Bucks.  Lamb was a good shooter in college and he will get to play more in Orlando, so he might just find is stroke there.

J.J. Redick worked hard and he got better every year with the Magic.  He played in 50 games (11 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 31.5 minutes, 15.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.  Redick played in 396 games (52 starts) in his seven years with the Magic and he averaged 21.9 minutes, 9.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.  Redick finishes up with the Magic #10 in team history in games played (396) and #8 in three pointers made (549).  Ayon played in 43 games (3 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 13.3 minutes, 3.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  Ishmael Smith played in 36 games (3 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 10.5 minutes, 2.4 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  Smith played in 56 games (3 starts) for the Magic in his two years with the team and he averaged 9.8 minutes, 2.3 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.

The Magic will miss Redick, but he was likely going to leave as a free agent after this season.  So they made the best deal they could, getting Beno Udrih to replace him and they also got two young players in Tobias Harris and Doron Lamb who could help them down the road.

The Magic have waived 32-year old shooting guard Quentin Richardson and 23-year old power forward Justin Harper.  Richardson played in 48 games (3 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 18.0 minutes, 4.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Richardson played in 105 games (22 starts) in his two years with the Magic and he averaged 17.3 minutes, 4.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  He only shot 35.6% from the floor for the Magic in his two years with the team.  The Magic are still on the hook to pay Richardson $5.4 million bucks in 2012-13.  Justin Harper played in 14 games (0 starts) as a rookie last year for the Magic and he averaged 6.0 minutes, 1.4 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.  Harper only shot 29% from the floor last year.  The Magic won’t miss Richardson or Harper in 2012-13 or down the road.

The Orlando Magic have signed 23-year old point guard Armon Johnson to a non-guaranteed contract.  Johnson played in 9 games (0 starts) for the Nets and Blazers last year in which he averaged 13.8 minutes, 5.2 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.  He has now played in 47 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 8.5 minutes, 3.3 points, 1.0 rebound and 1.2 assists per game.  He is going to have to have a good training camp to win a roster spot with the Magic when the 2012-13 season opens.

UPDATE:  (10/23/2012) – The Magic have waived Armon Johnson.

The Orlando Magic have signed 23-year old shooting guard E’Twaun Moore to a 2-year deal.  Moore played in 38 games (0 starts) as a rookie for the Celtics last year and he averaged 8.7 minutes, 2.9 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Moore only shot 38.1% from the floor last year.  Moore will be coming off the bench for the Magic in 2012-13.

The Orlando Magic have re-signed 24-year old point guard Ishmael Smith.  Smith played in 20 games (0 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 8.6 minutes, 2.3 points, 1.3 rebounds  and 1.6 assists per game.  He played in 26 games (1 start) overall last year for the Warriors and Magic in which he averaged 9.0 minutes, 2.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  Smith has now played in 69 games (4 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 9.8 minutes, 2.5 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  He isn’t the best shooter around, hitting only 37.8% from the floor, 31.6% from three point range and 61.3% from the free throw line so far in his career.  He will be one of Jameer Nelson’ caddies in 2012-13.

The Orlando Magic have finally dealt 26-year old center Dwight Howard…..to the Los Angeles Lakers as part of a huge, four team deal also involving the 76ers and Nuggets.  The Magic have also sent 24-year old power forward Earl Clark and 29-year old point guard Chris Duhon to the Lakers.  The Magic have also dealt 31-year old shooting guard Jason Richardson to the 76ers as part of this deal.  In return, the Magic are getting 26-year old shooting guard Arron Afflalo, 32-year old forward Al Harrington, a lottery protected 2014 first round pick and a 2nd round pick in 2013 from the Nuggets.  The Magic are getting 19-year old rookie small forward Moe Harkless, 21-year old center Nikola Vucevic and a lottery protected pick in 2015 from the 76ers.  The draft pick from the Sixers is top 14 protected in 2015 and 2016, top 11 protected in 2017, top 8 protected in 2018 and it reverts to tw0 second round picks if it gets all the way to 2019.  From the Lakers, the Magic will get 25-year old power forward Josh McRoberts, 23-year old small forward Christian Eyenga, a lottery protected first round pick in 2017 and a conditional second round pick in 2015.

Arron Afflalo was the best player the Magic got back in this deal.  He will likely start right away at shooting guard for them.  Afflalo played in 62 games (all starts) for the Nuggets last year and he averaged 33.6 minutes, 15.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.  He has now played in 362 games (223 starts) in his first five years in the NBA and he is averaging 24.4 minutes, 8.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.  Afflalo has seen his scoring average go up in each of his first five years in the NBA, which is a trend the Magic hope continues.  He is a good outside shooter too, hitting 40.5% from three point range so far in his NBA career.  Al Harrington could also get big minutes for the Magic off the bench (if they don’t deal him before the 2012-13 season begins).  Harrington played in 64 games (1 start) for the Nuggets last year and he averaged 27.5 minutes, 14.2 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  He has now played in 937 games (445 starts) in his first 14 years in the NBA and he is averaging 29.2 minutes, 13.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  Moe Harkless was a first round pick of the Sixers in last June’s NBA Draft.  Harkless played in 32 games for St. John’s last year in which he averaged 36.1 minutes, 15.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.4 blocked shots per game.  The Magic might take it a little slow with Harkless as he only played one year in college.  Nikola Vucevic will challenge Gustavo Ayon for the starting center job in 2012-13.  Vucevic played in 51 games (15 starts) as a rookie for the Sixers last year and he averaged 15.9 minutes, 5.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.  He has a nice upside.  Josh McRoberts is a backup and nothing more.  He played in 50 games (6 starts) for the Lakers last year in which he averaged 14.4 minutes, 2.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game.  McRoberts has now played in 205 games (60 starts) in his first five years in the NBA and he has averaged 15.3 minutes, 4.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.  Christian Eyenga is a very energetic player, but he’s still raw offensively.  He played in 7 games (0 starts) for the Lakers and Cavaliers last year in which he averaged 14.6 minutes, 2.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  Eyenga has now played in 51 games (18 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he has averaged 20.6 minutes, 6.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.

Dwight Howard can’t be replaced on the court for the Magic as he is the best center in the NBA.  He played in 54 games (all starts) last year for the Magic and he averaged 38.3 minutes, 20.6 points, 14.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.1 blocked shots per game.  Howard played in 621 games (620 starts) in his 8 years with the Magic in which he averaged 36.2 minutes, 18.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.0 steal and 2.2 blocked shots per game.  Howard leaves the Magic as the franchise’s all-time leader in rebounds (8,072), blocked shots (1,344) and points scored (11,435).  He is also #2 in games played (621), #10 in assists (935) and #4 in steals (626) in Magic history.  Jason Richardson was pretty much a bust for the Magic, coming over from the Suns in the Marcin Gortat deal (the Magic could really use the Polish Hammer now) a year and a half ago.  Richardson played in 54 games (all starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 29.5 minutes, 11.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game.  Richardson played in 109 games (all starts) in his two years with the Magic and he averaged 32.2 minutes, 12.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.1 steals).  Chris Duhon played in 63 games (9 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 19.5 minutes, 3.8 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.  He has now played in 114 games (14 starts) in his two years with the Magic and he averaged 17.5 minutes, 3.2 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.  Earl Clark played in 45 games (1 start) for the Magic last year and he averaged 12.4 minutes, 2.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  He played in 78 games (1 start) in his two years with the Magic and he averaged 12.2 minutes, 3.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.

The Magic got at least five draft picks and six players from the Magic for essentially Dwight Howard and a bunch of guys they didn’t mind dealing.  It doesn’t seem like a massive haul, but, Arron Afflalo, Nikola Vucevic and Moe Harkless will be the first building blocks for the future along with the Magic’s first round pick of this year, forward Andrew Nicholson.  I don’t think the Magic got enough in this deal, but at least Dwight Howard’s wasn’t allowed to walk while getting nothing in return.

UPDATE:  (10/23/2012) – The Magic have waived Christian Eyenga.

The Orlando Magic have hired 37-year old Jacque Vaughn as their new head coach.  Vaughn played 12 years in the NBA, appearing in 776 games (123 starts) in which he averaged 16.3 minutes, 4.5 points, 1.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.  He retired as a player in 2009.  He has spent the last two years on the San Anontio Spurs’ coaching staff.  Spurs’ head coach Gregg Popovich has compared Vaughn to Avery Johnson.  That has to make the Magic a tad excited as Johnson is a pretty good NBA head coach.  Vaughn is likely going to oversee a rebuilding project in Orlando after Dwight Howard and several veterans get dealt.

The Orlando Magic have picked up 28-year old shooting guard J.J. Redick’s option for the 2012-13 season, worth $6.1 million bucks.  Redick played in 65 games (22 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 27.2 minutes, 11.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.  Redick has now played in 346 games (41 starts) in his first six years with the Magic and he is averaging 20.5 minutes, 8.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  Redick has shot 40% from three point range in his career with the Magic as he is a long range assassin.  He is #9 in Magic’ history in three pointers made with 432 of them.  It will be interesting to see if  the Magic keep Redick or deal him as part of their soon to be rebuilding project.

The Orlando Magic have dealt 24-year old power forward Ryan Anderson to the New Orleans Hornets for 27-year old PF/C Gustavo Ayon.  Anderson was the NBA’s Most Improved Player in the NBA in 2011-12.  He played in 61 games (all starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 32.2 minutes, 16.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Anderson also led the NBA in three point shots made last year with 166 of them.  Anderson played in 188 games (81 starts) in his three years with the Magic and he averaged 22.9 minutes, 11.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.

Gustavo Ayon is a legit C/PF.  He played in 54 games (24 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 20.1 minutes, 5.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Ayon shot 53.6% from the floor last year but only 61.9% from the free throw line.  The Magic are used to having big guys on the team that can’t make their free throws.

This is the first signal that the Magic intend to go into a major rebuilding mode.  Dwight Howard is likely the next domino to fall.