As stated by NBA Senior Insider Shams Charania, the Orlando Magic (16-28, 13th in East) have emerged as a leading suitor for Toronto’s Fred VanVleet ahead of the 2023 NBA Trade Deadline. Due to a disappointing year for Toronto (20-24, 11th in East), NBA Executives expect the Raptors to be highly active at the Trade Deadline, highlighted by the action of listening to trade offers for their star players, including VanVleet.
Throughout the first half of the 2022-2023 season, VanVleet has had an integral role in Toronto’s offense, as the 6’1″, 197-pound guard is averaging a respectable 36.8 MPG, 18.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 6.3 APG, and 1.5 SPG in 36 starts this season. Despite a heavy workload in Toronto, VanVleet has remained durable, missing 124 out of 508 games in his first seven seasons in the NBA. In reference to this, VanVleet has endured serious shooting struggles, going just 37.6% from the field and 32.8% from three-point range, both career worsts.
Ahead of the 2024 Free Agency period, VanVleet is eligible to sign a four-year, $114 Million Extension with Toronto, which would make VanVleet the 14th highest-paid point guard next season. Per Sportrac, VanVleet would be right behind New York’s Jalen Brunson and just ahead of Utah’s Mike Conley, which feels right, considering the overall production and health of the guards listed. If VanVleet feels comfortable with signing a contract elsewhere, the seven-year veteran is able to decline his $22.8 Million Player Option for the 2023-2024 season and enter Free Agency one year early.
After winning the 2019 NBA Finals with the Raptors and becoming one of the league’s greatest undrafted success stories, VanVleet’s future in Toronto may be uncertain, but the 28-year-old has voiced his opinion about remaining loyal to the Raptors.
“I’m completely focused on this team. My loyalty is to this team and to this franchise and trying to get us back to the level that we’re accustomed to around here,” VanVleet told Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer.
It’s worth noting that if VanVleet does enter Free Agency, it’ll be extremely hard to return to Toronto due to their current salary cap situation. According to Sportrac, Toronto is $39.8 Million over the cap, meaning they’ll either need to offload current contracts on their roster to retain VanVleet. In addition to VanVleet, Guard Gary Trent Jr ($17.5 Million), Forward OG Anunoby ($17.3 Million), and Forward Chris Boucher ($12.6 Million) all remain candidates to be traded in an effort to clear cap space.
If VanVleet does become an Unrestricted Free Agent, Orlando is one of the teams best positioned to land the one-time NBA Champion. Entering the 2023 Offseason, Orlando is expected to have upwards of $30 million in salary cap, and that number may increase with the potential departures of Gary Harris ($13.0 Million), Terrence Ross ($11.5 Million), or Mo Bamba ($10.3 Million).
The Magic certainly have the assets to trade for VanVleet as well, either through a sign-and-trade in the offseason or as a normal trade before the February Ninth Trade Deadline. A package of Bamba and Harris or Ross may be enticing enough for the Raptors, who could easily “blow it up” and hit the reset button at the Trade Deadline. If this were to happen, a possible trade between Orlando and Toronto would look similar to the exchange listed below.
Orlando Receives: Fred VanVleet, 2025 Second Round Pick (Via Toronto)
Toronto Receives: Gary Harris, Mo Bamba, 2024 Second Round Pick (Via Orlando)
By moving VanVleet to Orlando, Toronto receives extra guard and center depth in Harris and Bamba, while also clearing cap space ahead of the 2023 free agency period. In doing so, Toronto would open more playing time for Malachi Fylnn as the starting Point Guard, who showed flashes of stardom in limited minutes last season. Likewise, the acquisitions of Harris and Bamba would give Head Coach Nick Nurse the choice of experimenting with different lineups, which could allow Siakam to play Power Forward, while Bamba serves as the starting Center.
In Orlando, VanVleet would immediately serve as the Starting Point Guard, providing a well-balanced offensive game and high basketball IQ. While Markelle Fultz has enjoyed a career season in the Magic’s starting lineup, VanVleet’s ability to shoot and Facilitate would add a new element to Orlando’s offense, which has averaged just 110.5 PPG as a team (27th in NBA). Furthermore, VanVleet’s past playoff experience and veteran leadership would be beneficial to the overall development of Jalen Suggs, Cole Anthony, and RJ Hampton.