Orlando Magic: Best Young NBA Core?
ORLANDO - With all but three players under the age of 25, the Orlando Magic boast one of the youngest teams in the NBA.
To put things in perspective, this year's second-round pick Caleb Houstan, was born five months before LeBron James was drafted in 2003.
Youth brings upon the idea of potential, which makes Orlando an extremely intriguing team heading into next season. But how good can this young core be?
With No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero and last year's lottery picks Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner looking to improve, Orlando has the opportunity to win a lot of games with this core someday. While that day may not come this season, development for this group will be key this season.
According to Bleacher Report, the Magic have the 10th best young core in the NBA.
"The Orlando Magic's youth brigade hasn't achieved anything yet, but it makes up for that in volume," Bleacher Report writes. "Odds are, one or two of the players listed outside the core three will join Banchero, [Wendell] Carter and Wagner. If that happens, we'll probably need to move the Magic up a few spots in our next set of rankings."
The Magic rank behind the Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Toronto Raptors, Detroit Pistons and Houston Rockets.
Most of the teams above the Magic are currently succeeding and contending while also maintaining a young core that will preserve their success long-term. That's ultimately where the Magic want to be, but in order to climb up the ladder, the team has to add an accomplishment or two really soon.