Tristan da Silva Contributing Despite Struggles from Deep
Orlando Magic rookie forward Tristan da Silva has had his troubles from beyond the arc, but is finding other ways to contribute on a team that desperately needs his production with several injuries to their front court throughout the season. The rookie has shown development in a multitude of areas, posting a 25-point night against Toronto on January 3 and a 16-point, 10-rebound night against Milwaukee on January 10.
Though he left the January 12 game early, it is not believed to be a lingering injury, and was marked as an "illness" according to Orlando Magic PR's X account. The rookie out of Colorado has been a nice replacement as the Magic deal with the injury to Franz Wagner, who plays the small forward spot in a starting role when healthy. This season, da Silva has averaged 9.0 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 0.6 stocks in 26.3 minutes per game.
Selected 18th overall by the Magic in the 2024 NBA Draft, da Silva has been one of the more consistent players in his class so far, and has been given more exposure and minutes due to untimely injuries not just to Wagner, but to Paolo Banchero as well. Considering the defensive-minded backcourt for Orlando with Jalen Suggs and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, it is always complimentary basketball to have a productive forward that can routinely get near or to double-digit points on any given night.
The major problem that da Silva has experienced, however, has been his inability to consistently connect on three-pointers, on which he's gone just 2-for-23 over his last four games. On the season, he is 31.5%, which is better than his recent performances indicate, but still not the level to which he is a real threat on the perimeter. If he can increase his deep shooting prowess, he can unlock a new level of his game and become one of the first-round steals of the 2024 Draft.
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