Rashard Lewis has officially been signed by the Orlando Magic. A press conference was scheduled for 1pm to announce the signing. The Magic acquired Lewis in a sign-and-trade with Seattle with the Magic sending only a second round pick to Seattle. When asked if the deal would have been done with or without the 6th year, Lewis spoke over Otis Smith and said he could absolutely answer that question. He was coming to Orlando regardless. I like Rashard and I think he'll be a great fit for the team. I only have two lingering questions. First, how much will his contract affect the franchise over the next couple years? Second, what do the Magic have left for the offseason. We're still lacking in a few areas, but we did lock up Lewis for 6 years and still have a few assets that can be traded for another big. Let me know what you guys think!
Rashard Lewis deal is official
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4 Comments on "Rashard Lewis deal is official"
Lewis is a great fit and gives us some fire power we were lacking, well since Tracy. We need to get a big, preferably a tough guy, to help Dwight. The right guy to do some dirty work down low will make Dwight that much more effective. Any rumors on bigs that we have talked to? Looks like Gortat might be playing his way to a roster spot in the Summer league. Granted it is only Summer league but word is he is active, has some rough talent and an athletic 7 footer is a rare commodity in today's league. LET THE EXCITEMENT BEGIN1
I agree that Lewis is a great fit. I just cringe at the price. I would have liked to see him come in here at the 75-80 over 5 years, instead of the 6 year max. Basically, we give up a second pick so we can give an already overpaid scorer 10.5% raises instead of 8%.
Anyhow, as far as bigs, there are a few out there that could help this team. Third Quarter Collapse has a couple broken down for you to look at: http://thirdquartercollapse.blogspot.com/2007/07/which-free-agent-big-men-should-magic_08.html
But as far as rumors, nothing is coming out of the organization that is credible. Gortat is a good candidate, and I even support bringing Kasun back. In my opinion, I don't think Kasun is any less a player than Darko. He makes up in the talent department with his heart - something Darko has yet to show anyone.
I agree with Bill Simmons in saying, "This is possibly the worst NBA contract ever". Since when do you give a guy the max deal who plays one side of the floor - offense? WOW This is simply amazing. I thought 80 million was unwise; this will haunt the franchise.
I disagree. The worst NBA contract ever was the one we didn't give Shaq. Though it is likely he would have bolted anyway.
75-80 mil would have been ok. anything in the range of 100 mil is silly. I don't think we would have kept Darko either way, but we could have probably picked up Gerald Wallace in the 60 mil range and been in better shape next summer.
With that said, it's over and done. No sense in playing armchair GM. He's our guy, let's see what he can do. If he average 20+ points on a team with Ray Allen, then I feel like we might have a couple special nights in store for next year.