Orlando Magic’s Tobias Harris Could Be Expendable

The Orlando Magic‘s logjam at forward, including rookie Aaron Gordon, the fourth-overall pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, could make restricted free agent to be Tobias Harris expendable

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It looks like the Orlando Magic and forward Tobias Harris will not be working out a deal before Friday, Oct. 31, which is the deadline for fourth-year players to be extended.

That means Tobias Harris will become a restricted free agent in the summer of 2015. Although he can sign an offer sheet with another team, the Magic can match any of those offers to retain him. Tobias Harris has expressed his desire to stay in Orlando and the Magic have done the same, but that doesn’t mean he will be in Orlando next season.

The Magic have plenty of players that play one of the two forward spots, including Maurice Harkless, Channing Frye, Kyle O’Quinn and the No. 4 overall pick of the 2014 NBA, Aaron Gordon.

“Well, Harris has said he’d like to remain in Orlando, even though reports indicate otherwise (or at least suggest it won’t happen via extension),” writes Chuck Myron of Hoops World. “But yes, I think Aaron Gordon’s presence plays a significant role in the Magic’s thinking… The Magic have other guys at both SF and PF (Harkless, Frye) they can plug in there, making Harris expendable.”

Of course, Tobias Harris is an excellent player and was the Magic’s leading scorer in their season-opening loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.

Tobias Harris put up 14.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game while shooting 46.4% from the field, 25.4% from beyond the arc and 80.7% from the charity stripe last night. In his career, he’s averaged 10.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game while shooting 46.1% from the floor, 28.0% from three and 79.1% from the free throw line.

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