The Orlando Magic’s next step won’t hinge on one dramatic leap. It’ll come from three starters doing the jobs the team needs most, night after night.
Desmond Bane is first on that list. In the 2025-26 regular season, he averaged 20.1 points per game, hit 39.1% from 3-point range and appeared in all 82 games, starting every one.
That kind of reliability matters for a Magic team that needs help from deep, especially after finishing 27th in 3-point percentage in the regular season. If Bane can stay on the floor and keep shooting at 39% or better in 2026-27, he gives Orlando both steady scoring and the kind of perimeter threat that can stretch defenses.
Franz Wagner is the other piece the Magic need to steady. In the 2024-25 regular season, he played in 60 games, starting all 60, and averaged 24.2 points per game on 46.3% shooting from the field.
Last season was a different story: Wagner appeared in just 34 games with 32 starts and averaged 20.6 points. Orlando needs more of the first version.
If he can stay healthy for most of the season and play closer to the workload he had in 2024-25, his scoring could climb back to the 24-point range and give the offense a much stronger foundation.
Then there’s Paolo Banchero, who played in 72 games in the 2025-26 regular season. Banchero, Wagner and Bane finished as the team’s top three scorers that year, in that order. If Banchero and Wagner can keep showing up consistently alongside Bane, the Magic have a real chance to build an offense they can trust.
The last piece is the one that could change how defenses have to treat them. If Banchero and Wagner can become more reliable from 3-point range, they’ll be tougher to contain and easier to play off of. That kind of shooting would open up more space, make them more dynamic and create cleaner looks inside.
If Orlando gets that mix from Bane, Banchero and Wagner, the starting lineup gives the Magic a much better chance to push forward in the Eastern Conference.
In Other News...
Magic Just Added Two Guards To A Roster Battle Worth Watching
The Magic have added a pair of veteran guards to the mix, signing free agents Malaki Branham and JD Davison to Exhibit 10 contracts as training camp competition starts to take shape. Both arrive with four years of NBA experience, giving Orlando a couple of capable backcourt options to look at as the roster begins to sort itself out.
Branham has already spent time with the Spurs, Wizards and Hornets, while Davison was waived by Houston after stops with the Celtics and Rockets. For a team still weighing the bottom end of its roster, these are the kinds of low-risk additions that can turn a quiet camp battle into something worth watching. [Read more 🡒]
Magic Young Core Now Faces A Pressure Test Fans Will Feel
Sean Sweeneys arrival gives Orlando a fresh voice on the sideline, and it comes with the kind of expectations that naturally follow a team trying to take the next step in the Eastern Conference. The Magic turned to a coach known for his defensive expertise after moving on from Jamal Mosley, with the hope that a sharper edge on both ends of the floor will help this young group keep climbing. It also means the new-look bench will be judged quickly, because effort and hustle have been part of the pitch from the start.
For a roster built around growth, the early test is as much about identity as it is about results. Fans should expect the preseason and the opening stretch of the regular season to show whether Orlando is actually getting better offensively and defensively, or just talking about the right things in the abstract. Sweeney inherits a team with clear ambitions, and the pressure will be on the Magic to prove the offseason change can translate into real progress when the games start to matter. [Read more 🡒]
Anthony Black Has One Big Job In Orlando This Season
Anthony Blacks breakout 2025 season gave the Magic a clearer picture of what he can be when his role grows and the offense starts coming more naturally. He showed improved scoring and spent part of the year in the starting lineup, giving Orlando a young guard who looked more comfortable attacking, creating and fitting into the teams broader rotation plans.
Now the focus shifts to what he does next, because the Magic need that production to hold even when hes working off the bench. His consistency this season could matter well beyond nightly rotation decisions, with Orlando also weighing the kind of future commitment that usually follows a player who has already started turning promise into something more tangible. [Read more 🡒]