2026 Off-Season Hopes & Dreams Thread

[hootie249]

We know when Suggs plays well this team cooks. We also know he is a mental liability. We hope new coaching or management changes this fact.

[The Neighborhood Bully]

18 hours ago, Soul Bro said:

Regular season or playoffs?

lol...is that a serious question?

[The Neighborhood Bully]

10 hours ago, hootie249 said:

We know when Suggs plays well this team cooks. We also know he is a mental liability. We hope new coaching or management changes this fact.

Given Sweeney is a defense first coach, and the fact that Suggs is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league (93rd percentile for perimeter isolation defense and the in the 98th percentile for ball screen navigation per Basketball Index), I'd be shocked if he was traded this summer.

[All Eyes On Me]

I feel like we got a deal with Dallas coming. Either a home run swing for Kyrie, which is highly unlikely, or something smaller where we get like Gafford and Klay for Wendell and filler

[Soul Bro]

5 hours ago, The Neighborhood Bully said:

lol...is that a serious question?

Yes. Suggs was virtually unplayable in the playoffs. He shot 29% from the field and 24% from three, and he was repeatedly targeted on defense via switches by Cade. It looks like his OFFRTG was 104 while his DEFRTG was 110. 

In Suggs, I see a defensively gifted guard who is wildly inconsistent and immature on offense. This is disheartening considering he just finished year 5. If Sweeney can help him grow up and play with consistency, great. But I personally wouldn’t be upset if he’s traded.

[All Eyes On Me]

39 minutes ago, Soul Bro said:

Yes. Suggs was virtually unplayable in the playoffs. He shot 29% from the field and 24% from three, and he was repeatedly targeted on defense via switches by Cade. It looks like his OFFRTG was 104 while his DEFRTG was 110. 

In Suggs, I see a defensively gifted guard who is wildly inconsistent and immature on offense. This is disheartening considering he just finished year 5. If Sweeney can help him grow up and play with consistency, great. But I personally wouldn’t be upset if he’s traded.

The worst part to me is his defense seemingly regressed a ton last year. He takes bad risks that sometimes result in highlights but usually result in disaster. He can’t guard in the post against a bigger opponent worth a damn and we don’t have a rim protector behind him to make up for it. I don’t know if it’s injuries, attitude, personal issues, whatever it was, but Jalen Suggs when he got back from his last injury last year was awful. Which is so disappointing because I remember him going toe to toe with the entire Knicks team in the in-season tourney pretty much by himself before he got banged up in that game.

[CTMagicUK]

Vuc on the vet minimum anyone? 

Can't protect the rim for **** but floor spacing big who's still a very good rebounder.

[CTMagicUK]

Also I think wanting to trade Suggs is mostly recency bias personally.

[orlandoholic]

1 hour ago, CTMagicUK said:

Also I think wanting to trade Suggs is mostly recency bias personally.

Indoor think so. Because he’s a valuable asset and he makes too much money for what he provides. He’s a better version of Keon Ellis. 
He‘s part of our weaknesses, as he’s not a playmaking PG, which we desperately need on a team with little „natural born“ playmakers. 

Of our starting lineup Suggs and WCJ are the weak spots. So it’s not too crazy to think about moving Suggs. 

[Shine88]

Mike Miller is building himself a roster. He just added Labaron Philon, Ebuka Okorie and Jayden Quiantance to his list.

If Quiantance fall past 25, we should try to trade up for him. 

[JJZFL]

1 hour ago, CTMagicUK said:

Also I think wanting to trade Suggs is mostly recency bias personally.

That’s probably true, but his very large role in our terrible performance in the second half of game six will always bother me. His careless turnover in the back court when he was dribbling the ball without really concentrating was one of the catalysts for their big run.

[All Eyes On Me]

3 hours ago, CTMagicUK said:

Vuc on the vet minimum anyone? 

Can't protect the rim for **** but floor spacing big who's still a very good rebounder.

I’m starting to think this is pretty much happening. Seems too perfect and a very Magic thing to do. As long as he’s good to be 6th man and Sweeney is willing to bench him when he’s getting whooped, I’m ok with it. He has his flaws, but he was a solid ball player for us for a long time.