The Orlando Magic have been playing solid basketball, but one player is severely underperforming.
The Orlando Magic have been solid to start the 2025-26 season. Even with injuries and growing pains playing a part, they are still 15-12 and very much in the picture to be among the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference.
The Magic’s front office moved on from more players than they got in the offseason, with the two big acquisitions being Desmond Bane and Tyus Jones. However, only Bane has lived up to expecations, and Jones has fallen severely short of them.
According to Law Murray of The Athletic, Jones’ brief time in Orlando may come to an end sooner than later. Recently, he put Orlando at No. 10 in his power rankings and added Jones to the trade block.
“Jalen Suggs went from matching Jalen Brunson’s scoring output in the first half Saturday to being unable to get a field goal after halftime, in part because of a hip injury that knocked him out of the game for good in the fourth quarter,” Murray wrote. “Prior to Suggs trying to gut it out in Las Vegas, Jones continued to struggle to make an impact, which opened the door for Orlando rookie Jase Richardson to finish the loss to the Knicks.”
“Expect Jones’ $7 million expiring contract to be shopped hard by the Magic, and don’t be surprised if they don’t find any takers amid Jones’ worst season (34.3 percent field goals).”
Jones has had anything but an ideal season so far. The 29-year-old is averaging just 2.5 points and 2.1 assists through 27 games. Not only is he shooting 34.3 percent on field goals, but his 3-point percentage is even worse (28.9 percent).
In Thursday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets, Jones was inserted into the starting lineup in lieu of Suggs. In just over 19 minutes, he scored five points and logged four assists but was a –20.
Meanwhile, Richardson has made the most of his restricted opportunities. He has only appeared in 16 games and received a little over seven minutes of playing time in each contest — which is not uncommon for a rookie — where he has averaged 4.1 points on 45 percent 3-point shooting.
Richardson’s performance on Thursday (nine points, 4-9 FG) also gained the praise of Magic coach Jamahl Mosley.
“I think Jase had some great looks,” he said. “Getting downhill, attacking the basket, picking up full court. All those things that we're asking him to do to continue to help his team.”
If Richardson continues to evolve and Jones continues to regress, the Magic might shake things up quickly.