The Magic Insider

G League Winter Showcase Offers 'Large Opportunity' for Magic Affiliate Osceola

The NBA G League Winter Showcase descends upon Orlando this weekend, starting Thursday. With all 30 NBA general managers and plenty of scouts expected to be on hand, the Magic's home city becomes a four-day epicenter of opportunity.

Mason Williams

Osceola Magic players Mac McClung (left) and Ethan Thompson (right) pose for a photo at the NBA G League Winter Showcase.
Osceola Magic players Mac McClung (left) and Ethan Thompson (right) pose for a photo at the NBA G League Winter Showcase. / NBA G League
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ORLANDO, Fla. – The NBA's annual answer to Major League Baseball's Winter Meetings is disguised as the NBA G League Winter Showcase.

The event comes just after the recently signed restriction comes off for multiple players, and with all 30 general managers in one place for four days, it helps to grease the wheel of possible trades among eventual buyers and sellers for the February deadline.

What can easily get lost in the potential of deals, however, is that the event is still centered around basketball. Starting Thursday, Orlando not only becomes a four-day stage for front offices to gauge the trade market but also serves as the hotbed of opportunity for hundreds of players seeking a call-up to become one of the 450 rostered NBA players.

With the most important sets of eyeballs all in one spot, it can be a career-changing weekend for anyone with a big enough showing over their two-game allotment.

"It's a test for everybody," two-way guard Mac McClung said of the Showcase. Because he's signed on a two-way contract with the Magic, he's ineligible to be signed by any other team. His teammates, however, are free to be signed by other teams if someone offers them a deal.

"You don't want to change your game or anything' you want to play the way you're supposed to," McClung continued. "But I've seen guys, my teammates last year, Brandon Williams, at the Showcase got called up. It's a great opportunity. He's been there for two years now. It's very valuable and I definitely am aware of that for everybody."

MORE: Osceola Check-In – news and notes surrounding the Magic's G League affiliate

Before the Showcase last season, Williams averaged 22.4 points with Osceola while shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from three. At the event, Williams then scored 26 points in game one and 25 points in game two for Osceola.

Shortly after, on December 28, Williams signed a two-way deal with the Dallas Mavericks. He now splits time between the parent club and its G League affiliate, the Texas Legends.

"As a two-way, I feel accountable for wins and losses even more and I feel accountable for putting guys in situations to be called up," McClung said. "You've got to win most of the time to get called up, so I definitely feel that pressure and us getting this new reset, I'm very motivated for that."

One quirk of the G League schedule is that it's broken into three parts – the Tip-Off Tournament, used to determine the seeds and teams vying for the G League Showcase title; the Showcase itself; then the regular season and playoffs. Osceola went just 5-9 in the Tip-Off Tournament, but after this weekend, their slate is wiped clean at 0-0.

Call-ups can happen anytime throughout the year, but it's at the Showcase where players – like Williams did last season – can put themselves on the radar of other teams in search of an addition.

Among the potential candidates for the Magic is Ethan Thompson, a 6-foot-5, 25-year-old guard from Oregon State. He's spent two seasons with Windy City and one with Mexico City before joining Osceola this season. So far, he's excelling with coach Dylan Murphy's squad.

During the Tip-Off Tournament, Thompson averaged 16.3 points on 45.2 percent shooting from the field and 42.0 percent from three. He also had 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 31.1 minutes a game.

"[The Showcase] provides a large opportunity," Thompson said. "It's gonna be filled with the people that we want watching the games, they're gonna be in the stands. Obviously, the nature of the G League is to get out of it and get that call to the NBA, so that's the goal."

"The G League is all about getting to the NBA, right," Murphy said. "But our guys understand trying to win basketball games and play the right way is part of that growth, both individually and as a team. We're excited for the chance to play in front of the NBA GMs and scouts and all that, but we also understand it's not about two games, right? Your assessment as a player in the G League is the whole season. So yes, we want to play well at the Showcase, but you don't worry about putting all your eggs in one basket."

Osceola takes on Bronny James and the South Bay Lakers on Saturday, Dec. 21 at noon ET, and the game will be broadcast live on ESPNews. They'll then square off with the College Park Skyhawks on Sunday, Dec. 22 at 1 p.m. ET, which will air live on NBATV.

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