NBA Draft: Should Magic Trade Back Into First Round?
ORLANDO -- The Orlando Magic hold the top pick in this month's NBA Draft, and the team is probably going to keep it to select either Auburn's Jabari Smith or Gonzaga's Chet Holmgren.
However, the team also has two second-round picks at Nos. 32 & 35 that hold a little less certainty.
The team could stay where it is and take two players at the top of the second round, trade back to acquire more assets or dip their toes back in the first round.
All three are legitimate options, but the most intriguing one is definitely finding a way to trade back into the first round.
A standard rookie contract for a first-round pick is typically a four-year deal with the third and fourth years being team options. That's why Indiana Pacers second-year player Jalen Smith, the 10th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, is an unrestricted free agent this coming season. The Phoenix Suns drafted him in the lottery, but once they saw no path for Smith to get minutes on a contending team, they declined his team option, making him an unrestricted free agent.
In the case of a player like Mo Bamba, the Magic's 2018 first-round draft pick, he played four years on his rookie deal but now faces restricted free agency. This means that the Magic could match any offer he signs in free agency this year.
Second round picks aren't given the luxury of restricted free agency.
For a player like Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson, a second-round selection in 2018, he enters unrestricted free agency instead of restricted because he was a second round pick. This means that he will get to choose any team to sign with.
The second-round picks also get less guaranteed money than their first-round colleagues.
The rules favors players who come into the league with higher draft stock, but rewards second-round picks who can find a way to make it work.
That's why trading back into the first round benefits the Magic, as it gives more control over its selection. And the team doesn't have to risk not drafting the player it wants.
But any trade in the NBA Draft is a risk. Just make sure the risk warrants the reward.
