It’s no secret that the Orlando Magic are in the market for a veteran outside shooter, and they have reportedly identified Klay Thompson as a potential candidate.
Klay Thompson is coming off a down year with the Golden State Warriors, and he’ll be an unrestricted free agent when he finishes his five-year, $190 million contract he signed in 2019 at the end of the month.
Because he is not getting any younger, Thompson is searching for another big payday before approaching the twilight of his NBA career. The four-time NBA champion will be looking to get his one more lucrative deal with the Orlando Magic, but according to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer, that might not be part of their plans.
“Orlando, sources said, indeed holds intentions of pursuing a veteran guard/wing who can space the floor around Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, without commanding too much on-ball oxygen,” Fischer wrote in his column.
“Orlando appears to have an appetite to only offer a short-term deal, similar to the two-year, above-market contract the Magic awarded Joe Ingles a season ago. Thompson is also believed by league sources to want a deal of at least three seasons,” he added.
Other alternatives for the Orlando Magic besides Klay Thompson
The Orlando Magic won’t have a shortage of options to upgrade their wing depth if they don’t agree to terms with Klay Thompson, with Paul George and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope named as viable alternatives.
George is the ideal candidate for the Orlando Magic because of his elite two-way play, and he can serve as a mentor for Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero.
Caldwell-Pope, on the other hand, is a reliable veteran who has won two NBA championships. In his two seasons with the Denver Nuggets, the 30-year-old has shot at least 40 percent from three-point land.
