The Orlando Magic’s season has been over for nearly three weeks after squandering a 3-1 lead to the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

With the offseason having been underway for Orlando, a clear evaluation can be made of the Magic’s best players, and that is what Law Murray of The Athletic has done.

Recently, Murray released his annual ‘NBA Players Tiers' list for 2026. As I mentioned before, Murray categorizes his rankings through a numbered system (1-5) and subdivides those numbered categories by letter (A-E). My job, especially for Magic fans who do not subscribe to The Athletic, is to provide the ranking Murray gave to each Magic player and my reaction as to whether or not I agree with him and think it is justified.

I try to find holes in his argument or things he may have missed, given that I had plenty of eye test time by being the Magic beat writer for Roundtable Sports and having a consistent presence in the building. The first player Murray graded was Paolo Banchero, so naturally, that is who my first reaction piece was on. Now, it is time to talk about Desmond Bane.

Murray placed Bane in the 3C tier, which indicates the same ranking he held in 2025 on Murray’s list. Banchero, meanwhile, regressed from the 3A to 3B tier.

Bane is surrounded by players such as Cooper Flagg, Julius Randle, Zion Williamson and his teammate, Franz Wagner (who we will get to in a separate article).

Murray credits Bane for the value of his durability and 3-point shooting that he brought to Orlando in his first season with the Magic, but he illustrates Bane’s ceiling as a player and does not show confidence that he will exceed his limitations.

In some ways, I understand where Murray is coming from. Bane is limited, and if his shot is not falling, he can be a difficult watch on the offensive end. However, the durability aspect is so important here. Murray applauded Bane for starting in all 82 games, but there is more to it than that.

Once again, the Magic were dealt a tough hand with injuries, but somehow, Bane came away unscathed. The most games he had played prior to 2025-26 was 76, and to show up each and every night for the Magic throughout the regular and postseason was critical for a team that bet its future on him, especially when he would use his strong frame to impose his will in driving lanes, which often poses a risk of getting hurt.

Additionally, Bane demonstrated, at many points, flashes of first-option capabilities. When Banchero was hurt, Wagner was hurt or either of them were having a down night, Bane had what it took to put the team on his back.

Back-to-back 37-point games, a game-winner and the first player in 30-plus years to hit seven 3-pointers in a playoff game for the Magic are just a few of the moments Bane produced to demonstrate what he is capable of, all while continuously acclimating to a new team and system. 

Once slight concern is that Bane averaged less 3-point attempts than he has in years past, and while he averaged a 39.1% clip, it is a noticeable decline from his time in Memphis during the 2021-22 season when he averaged 3.0-6.9 threes and hit a career-high 43.6% of them.

Murray also believes that what Bane provides is the most that can be asked of him unless he "acquires the dark arts of free-throw merchantry." Well, Bane did attempt a career-high average in free throws (3.8-4.2) and hit them at a career-high 90.8% clip to boot, so that part of his game is more than efficient and possibly growing.

Overall, Murray’s analysis of Bane is not wrong, but it isn’t perfect, nor does it provide the full context of Bane’s impact. When I look at the list of players in the 3B tier, an argument can be made that Bane should have been promoted from the category he has been occupying.

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