Magic GM will be 'as aggressive as anyone' in free agency after Millsap whiff
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The Orlando Magic snuck up on some people when they jumped into the mix for prized free-agent forward Paul Millsap.
The Magic have been in rebuilding mode for so long, it was jarring not only to see them pivot towards big summer spending, but to see their big-shot target show interest in turn.
Millsap ultimately opted to re-sign with the Atlanta Hawks, but the Magic had sent a message: They're ready to stop laying groundwork and start building.
Dispiriting as it was to lose out on Millsap - who would have been a terrific fit - Magic general manager Rob Hennigan isn't about to be dissuaded.
"We’ll continue to look at the free agents that are available," Hennigan said Thursday, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. "We’ll continue to look at trade opportunities. We still have quite a bit of cap space. Our tune has not changed. We’ll continue to look for opportunities. And if we feel like the opportunities make really good sense, then we'll be as aggressive as anyone to try to complete a deal."
Perhaps the most intriguing piece of offseason business remaining for the Magic is a decision on what to do with restricted free agent Tobias Harris, a talented, 6-foot-8, positionally ambiguous 22-year-old said to be seeking a max contract.
Should they renounce him - and it's been reported they will if he receives a max offer sheet from another team - the Magic would have upwards of $15 million in cap room, but they'd be hard-pressed to find a better replacement. The free-agent power forward pool, in particular, has dried up in a hurry.
Hennigan doesn't see that as an issue. Asked if he'd continue to hunt similar forwards after the Millsap miss, he said: "I’m not sure. I think we have enough on the roster as is," which could mean he intends to bring Harris back, or that he has high hopes for the equally positionless Aaron Gordon.
Pressed to elaborate, he added: "It just goes back to those opportunities again. Like I said a few weeks ago, we have to be careful of spending just to spend."