Orlando Magic Buy Out Glen Davis, Look Ahead to the NBA Draft

With the buying out of Glen Davis' contract last week, the Orlando Magic have officially waved the white flag on this season.

That is not a bad thing if you are a Magic fan.

The team wasn't going to make a serious playoff run even in the weak Eastern Conference, so why not turn over his minutes to young guys like Andrew Nicholson or Kyle O'Quinn and see if they can contribute?

Davis can't complain after landing on his feet with the Los Angeles Clippers, who are coached by his former Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers. In L.A., he has a chance to compete for a championship this season.

As a fan, you may not like the move—especially now when the team is just starting to win a few games—but you understand that this is a business, and there is no need to pay veterans high salaries to come in last place again.

This move also makes sense in that the Magic will be in the NBA draft lottery again this year, and many experts believe that this draft is the deepest in years. Orlando could easily score Julius Randle, Joel Embiid, Jabari Parker or any number of talented frontcourt players, which means Davis would get less playing time next year anyway. Plus, he has been a bit injury-prone in recent years, including missing 48 games last season.

Hopefully, we will see Nicholson or O'Quinn improve over the rest of the season with more time on the floor, and perhaps Tobias Harris steps up his game a bit as well. If the Magic decide to draft another guard with a high pick to partner with this year's Rookie of the Year candidate, Victor Oladipo, it could likely mean long-time point guard Jameer Nelson will be shipped out soon.

This could also work out if they go with a big body early in the second round. Florida Gators center Patric Young might still be around at that point, and his offensive game seems to get better every week in his senior season.

As you can see by their pitiful rankings, they could use help at several positions, including point guard, where they rank near the bottom of the league in assists.

But at least with some recent home wins over teams like the Indiana Pacers, Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks, Orlando is starting to show some signs of breaking out of its post-Dwight Howard funk.