The Orlando Magic are weeks removed from dismissing head coach Jamahl Mosley from his position after suffering a tough elimination by the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

The Magic, as the eighth seed, jumped out to a surprising 3-1 lead against top-seeded Detroit, but a calf strain suffered by Franz Wagner and a horrific offensive performance watched their advantage dissipate. Now, the franchise needs its next leader after Mosley helped navigate it from being a lottery team to a playoff team.

Mosley has since found his new home with the New Orleans Pelicans, and he did well to instill a defensive-minded culture that helped the Magic take a step from the depths of the Eastern Conference to a team capable of playing in April and May. Now, the question is if the front office can find the right candidate to elevate Orlando to playing in late May and into June?

The Magic’s patience in the matter is likely by design, and I talked recently on the Full Court Magic Podcast about the habits of President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman when it comes to hiring a new coach, and it is a process that has taken weeks in the past.

At the time of publication of this article, it has been 23 days since the news of Mosley’s firing spread throughout the NBA media space. In just over three weeks, more candidates have emerged.

Names like Micah Nori, the lead assistant of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Jeff Van Gundy, assistant coach of the Los Angeles Clippers, Sean Sweeney, associate head coach of the San Antonio Spurs and Jason Kidd, the recently ousted head coach of the Dallas Mavericks have all been floated to fill Orlando’s vacancy.

Some of these coaches have more experience than others, and Weltman demonstrated an open mind about who could fill the role when he addressed the media following Mosley’s firing. What is most important is finding someone who will elevate the Magic’s young core, which I also addressed on Full Court Magic.

"So, what I think, is whoever is going to best maximize Paolo Banchero as the face of this franchise, whoever's going to best maximize Franz Wagner, and Desmond Bane, and Jalen Suggs and this young core that is poised to take the next step and is desiring to take the next step. I mean, I'm speaking in obvious terms here, but that has to be the guy, right? 

"Weltman made the right choice to get Mosley as a culture builder, to get the Magic out of purgatory and the depths of the Eastern Conference, to get them out of, you know, lottery land and turn them into a playoff team. Now, it's time to take the next step."

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