The Magic Insider

Magic's Jalen Suggs' Three-Point Shot Reached New Heights Last Year. Can He Replicate It?

Although his Orlando Magic teammates struggled to shoot consistently, Jalen Suggs' progression as a catch-and-shoot three-point marksman has him as one of the best young two-way players in the league. Can he maintain it in 2024-25?

Mason Williams

May 3, 2024: Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) shoots a three-point basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the second quarter of game six of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Kia Center.
May 3, 2024: Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) shoots a three-point basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the second quarter of game six of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Kia Center. / Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports
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Upon dissection of the Orlando Magic’s offense from a season ago, there’s no hiding the struggles the East’s 5-seed had regarding consistent output.

The Magic offense was 22nd in offensive rating throughout the regular season and was near the bottom of the league in three-point attempts and shooting percentage – 24th and 29th, respectively. If it is to improve offensively in 2024-25, it would almost certainly be a byproduct of a substantial increase in each aforementioned category, among other aspects. 

“Reflecting back, you look at shooting,” head coach Jamahl Mosley told reporters in his exit interview, referencing where his team would need to improve over the summer. Fresh off a game seven loss to Cleveland in the NBA Playoffs first round, Orlando shot just 42.0% from the field as a team in its first taste of the postseason in five years.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s addition via free agency was a move that, should it work as intended, would contribute to plugging that hole while maintaining the stellar defensive profile Orlando hung its hat on a season ago.

But perhaps lost amongst the Magic’s poor shooting numbers as a whole is the consistent improvement Caldwell-Pope’s new backcourt running mate has shown as a threat from distance. 

Jalen Suggs, the Gonzaga product and No. 5 overall Orlando selection in the 2021 draft, elevated his three-point percentage for the second season running in 2023-24 – a major reason why he put together his most complete season thus far in the league. He averaged 12.6 points across 75 games, shooting career-best marks of 47.1% from the field and 39.7% from three.

Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) warms up before game three of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Kia Center.
Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) warms up before game three of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Kia Center. / Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

In comparison to his rookie season, Suggs was +11.0% from anywhere on the floor and +18.3% beyond the arc. After Joe Ingles signed with Minnesota over the summer, Suggs is Orlando’s best returning three-point marksman ahead of the upcoming season.

Of equal – if not more – importance is the comfort Suggs showcased in his offensive off-ball-heavy role. With Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner leading the Magic in assists a season ago as playmaking wing-forward combos, Suggs’ 19.1% usage rate was 2.5% lower than the league average for point guards. Instead, he operated as more of a traditional shooting guard, where his usage rate would then be just 0.8% lower than the league average a season ago.

To excel off-ball and fit into the offense, Suggs’ development as a catch-and-shoot scorer from three is possibly where his game has taken the most crucial strides forward.

Of all shots attempted a season ago, 39.9% of them were of the catch-and-shoot variety. On such looks, which he fired 3.8 of per game, Suggs shot 40.7%. Dating back to his first campaign in the league, as his frequency of looks has increased, it’s become the most prominent – and efficient – way the rising fourth-year guard looks to score.

This all comes on top of Suggs taking the toughest defensive perimeter assignment on any given evening. Earning a nod as an All-Defensive Second Team member, his two-way excellence meant there may have been no more important role player in Orlando’s rotation a season ago. He helped unlock a new level of team success that saw the Magic emerge into the playoff picture, and he became invaluable to Orlando’s formula. It wasn’t without flaws, but for what Suggs was asked to do, he delivered.

Now, the challenge is presented to Suggs to maintain the strong showing with another consistent season this upcoming year. Unless a late deviation in philosophy comes via the acquisition of a facilitate-first ball-handler that would inherit some of the Banchero and Wagner-led possessions, he’ll likely spend more time moving without the ball in his hands; getting open for swing and skip passes, receiving kicks off drives or as the open man off of defensive rotations.

Without the constant pressure of having the ball in his hands, he’s free to expend more energy on the defensive end of the floor. 

A pest himself defensively, Caldwell-Pope said on Draymond Green’s podcast he and Suggs’ coming together will make Orlando “one of the best backcourt defensive teams in the league.” He’d go on to mention that both could be up for All-Defensive consideration come the end of the year. Suggs should be aided by Caldwell-Pope’s shooting prowess, too – another catch-and-shoot option who shot 34.8% on such looks and just turned in his third career season with a three-point percentage higher than 40%.

For better or worse, Orlando has further leaned into the ideology this offseason that guards such as Suggs don’t need to be primary on-ball options to carve out effective offensive roles. If the Magic felt otherwise, it could’ve brought in a guard like Tyus Jones or brought back Markelle Fultz to rotate with Cole Anthony, Anthony Black and other options in the backcourt.

Instead, the Magic signed one of the premier veteran 3-and-D players in the league over the last decade to run with one who could be on the trajectory toward elite status in the same department.

That’s indicative of the development process Orlando has trusted to spurn a turnaround quickly. For more progress forward, they'll trust Suggs' improvements to stick next season.

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Mason Williams
MASON WILLIAMS