Why the Magic's 3-point shooting remains a big problem

Over the last several seasons, the Orlando Magic's offense -- specifically, its 3-point shooting -- has been their fatal flaw. Despite climbing out of the bottom-third in offensive efficiency, they were still a bottom-five 3-point shooting last year.

Should that still be a problem heading into 2026-27? We asked our group of panelists to gather their thoughts.

Ethan Skolnick:

While the Magic made one significant change this offseason -- new coach Sean Sweeney -- it's hard to see how that alone will fix the team's biggest offensive issue. The spacing still may be lacking. Desmond Bane was the only player on the team to shoot better than 35 percent from long-range on more than five attempts. And the Magic didn't add anyone who did so over the course of the entire season anywhere else.

Nikola Vucevic did in Chicago, but not after his trade to Boston, so the hope has to be that he returns to form in familiar Orlando surroundings. A healthy Orlando roster could help, but neither Franz Wagner or Paolo Banchero is close to elite from deep, and Jalen Suggs shoots too much from there (6.3 attempts per game) when he's under 34 percent.

Orlando still needs to fix this to have a chance to jump up the East.

Jeremy Brener:

The Orlando Magic's shooting is absolutely still a concern. Every year, it seems like the team makes an adjustment by adding a strong shooting specialist or two, but they seem to struggle when they arrive to the team.

Last season, the Magic shot 46.4 percent from the field as a team, which ranked in the bottom half of the league. If the Magic can raise that percentage by 2-3 points, they could emerge as one of the best teams in the league.

I'll be curious to see how Sean Sweeney's system sets shooters up for higher-percentage looks because that's probably what's needed more than swapping out players.

Austin Dobbins:

While it is easy to say that shooting is a concern for the Orlando Magic, they have plenty of capable shooters, their shot profiles were just poor this past season. The Magic's most inefficient shooters (Suggs, Black, Carter) consistently put up the most shots from beyond the arc. With a more cohesive offense presumably being created with the addition of Sean Sweeney the Magic should become a capable team from beyond the arc.

They have proven shooters in Desmond Bane and Tristan da Silva, and should see a jump from many (Jett Howard, Anthony Black, Noah Penda). I believe the new offense will create better looks, and in turn make them a better three-point shooting team. I would have liked for them to add another perimeter threat, but thanks to their cap situation, roster navigation has been difficult. I project them to join the top 20 in 3-point percentage -- they were 27th this past season.

Jalen Suggs and Anthony Black — May 3, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) puts his arm around guard Anthony Black (0) in the second half against the Detroit Pistons during game seven of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Ryan Kaminski:

Orlando's 3-point shooting is still arguably the biggest swing factor keeping them from jumping from playoff pretender to championship contender, but there's real reason to have hope.

The Magic have been one of the worst 3-point shooting teams for many years, but they do have capable shooters on this roster, and injuries have plagued the last two seasons so badly that it's had a ripple effect on this as well. But Orlando is starting the season healthy, which means their main ball-handlers will likely be their best paint forces in Paolo and Franz, and their main floor spacers will be their best shooters in Bane, Suggs, Black, followed by Wendell, da Silva, Penda, Jase, Jevon, and the return Vooch.

The other big X-factor here is how new Head Coach Sean Sweeney changes the offensive scheme; this Magic team could legitimately be one of the *best* 3-point shooting teams in the league with this roster, simply by changing 1.) Who is creating the shots? 2) Who is taking the shots? 3) How are they taking those shots? (on or off the ball) and 4) Where are they taking those shots?

If Sweeney is able to fully unlock a balanced offensive attack with this group, one that revolves around the relocation, movement 3-point sniper gravity of Desmond Bane as much as it relies on the drives of Franz and Paolo, where the most efficient shooters are taking the most efficient shots based on their skill sets and the shot locations on the floor, who knows how much spacing that could bring.

Orlando staying healthy for long enough to see it play out is the only way to find out.

Matt Hanifan:

To keep it short and (not so) sweet: The Magic have been a bottom-seven 3-point shooting in all but one of the last 10 seasons. They did nothing to address that problem this summer. Coming off a season where it ranked No. 27 in 3-point percentage, despite a good shooting season from Desmond Bane and encouraging signs from Franz Wagner and Tristan da Silva, their 3-point shooting remains a big problem.

They will be competitive. But they won't be able to break through the glass ceiling until it's addressed tenfold.

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