Fresh off a disappointing first-round playoff exit, the Orlando Magic signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to a three-year, $66 million contract on Sunday to improve his defense, durability and outside shooting, league sources said.
Caldwell-Pope, 31, will almost certainly be installed as the Magic’s new starting shooting guard, replacing Gary Harris, whose tenure in Orlando was plagued by injuries.
Caldwell-Pope could be an ideal role player to join a young core that also includes All-Star power forward Paolo Banchero, small forward Franz Wagner and combo guard and defensive star Jalen Suggs.
The 6-foot-5 Caldwell-Pope hasn’t ranked highly in NBA All-Defensive Team voting in recent years, but he’s widely regarded as one of the league’s tenacious and most reliable perimeter defenders and can challenge an opponent’s top wing scorer.
He’s also one of the best wing three-point shooters in the league. Over the past four seasons, Caldwell-Pope has made 40.6 percent of his three-point attempts on 4.5 attempts per game.
Three-point shooting was a major weakness for the Magic last season, as Orlando finished the 2023-24 regular season 24th in the league in three-point shooting percentage, making just 35.2 percent of their shots.
In the playoffs, the Cleveland Cavaliers forced the Magic to take longer shots in the paint, but he shot just 30.9 percent from three-point range.
Caldwell-Pope was a key contributor as a starting wing for two NBA champion teams, the 2019-20 Los Angeles Lakers and the 2022-23 Denver Nuggets. But he is also known for being an unselfish player. He ranks as a low-usage wing, which means he should not impede Banchero and Wagner’s shot attempts while also serving as an extra ball-handler and decision-maker when needed.
Caldwell-Pope is also durable after spending the past two seasons with Denver, appearing in 76 or 77 regular-season games in each of the past three seasons. He’d fit well into a stout Magic defense that ranked third in the league in defensive efficiency in 2023-24.
The third year of Caldwell-Pope’s new contract is a player option.
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