Bounce-Back Year From Terrence Ross Could Lead To Trade

During the 2021 NBA Trade Deadline, the Orlando Magic decided to go all-in on rebuilding their team. Their current core at the time had after six years together grown stale, and ultimately had little to show for it.

As such, Aaron Gordon was sent to Denver, Nikola Vučević to Chicago, and Evan Fournier to Boston.

Left on the roster was Terrence Ross, who was widely expected to get moved during the upcoming offseason.

Fast forward to October of 2022, and Ross remains on the Magic roster, where he’s gotten off to a tremendous start.

Rehabbed trade value

It’s no secret that Ross was, at best, viewed as a diminishing asset over the past year. Last season the veteran hit just 39.7% of his shots, and saw his three-point efficiency fall below 30% for the first time in his career.

The Magic, who were reportedly looking for a first-round pick for the wing, quickly saw a dry market. Ross, after all, was coming off the worst season of his career by being even worse. That’s rarely a recipe for asset optimization.

This year, Ross has started all four games, playing 33.8 minutes per game, over ten more than last year, and has enjoyed a bit of a resurgence. The 31-year-old is netting 15.3 points, hitting 53.5% of his shots, including 44% from long range, feeding off the attention given to rookie sensation Paolo Banchero, and second-year man Franz Wagner.

The development should have members of Orlando’s front office excited, as Ross could change his own narrative, and re-establish some of his lost trade value.

With at least a handful of teams expected to relentlessly tank for Victor Wembanyama during the second half of the season, it stands to reason that a buyer’s market will develop, as teams in the playoff hunt will look to get better, and thus would gladly take solid veterans off the hands of teams looking to get worse.

While Orlando may not get a first-rounder for Ross, due in part to his pending free agent status next summer, it’s not entirely impossible to expect a few second-rounders for him, if he proves himself capable of maintaining his current production.

Contenders always need shooting

Ross is a floor-stretcher, who plays two positions. He can play in the backcourt as a shooting guard, and can slide up to play as a wing. He’s not a strong on-ball creator, but can handle the ball in a pinch if the need arises. The above makes him attractive to championship contenders, who understand that a playoff game can be swung by having a shooter get hot, and Ross certainly fits that bill.

Or course, his $11.5 million salary does complicate things somewhat. Good teams usually spend their money well, so in order to match salaries, a good team would likely have to give up a player of similar value to get the deal done, which doesn’t make a lot of sense for either team.

Enter the Miami Heat.

The club needs more talent, and they especially need a wing who can both shoot, and stay on the floor defensively during the playoffs.

Miami has grown stuck with Duncan Robinson, who has been exposed for his lack of creation ability, and defensive accumen. Robinson is earning $16.9 million this year, and has another three seasons remaining on his deal after the conclusion of this season, albeit his last season is only guaranteed by a little over $9.8 million.

The Heat are clearly going to feel some salary cap pressure by having a player on their roster earning well over $17 million a year, who is close to unplayable in the playoffs.

As such, it’s worth exploring a potential deal between the two Florida teams.

Orlando could take on Robinson’s deal, as they’re still a few years away from finding themselves in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference, and relinquish both Ross and Gary Harris, who is on a fully non-guaranteed deal next season, effectively making him a free agent.

The cost of gaining salary cap flexibility, and improving the roster for this season? Rookie forward Nikola Jović.

Both sides will have to ponder whether it’s worth it for them. Miami gets better immediately, and they get off a horrid contract, but they also lose their one young player with upside, leaving him entirely exposed in the future with little incoming youth to carry over when Jimmy Butler begins to feel the weight of his age.

The Magic might also question if Jović is even a good enough prospect to justify clogging up their cap for so long, which likely forces them to ask for some type of additional draft pick compensation.

However, it could be a home run for both parties, if things work out. Miami would likely stand a decent chance of being able to re-sign Ross over the summer, given that Florida has been his home for years, and where he’s settled in.

Plus, the Heat are always expected to be competitive, which you have to assume is intriguing to Ross, who has spent some of his prime years on a team that’s gone nowhere.

Overall, there’s some logic in having those two teams explore some possibilities, which wouldn’t have been the case if Ross hadn’t looked a lot better in the early going of this season.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.