The Orlando Magic’s NBA free agency period was relatively quiet for the team. The team signed two free agents and let three go. The big moves were in the draft, though, taking two prospects in the first round. Now, with NBA free agency winding down and a handful of players still on the market, there is a Magic free agent out there worth targeting in the bargain bin, and his name is Buddy Boeheim.

The bargain-bin Magic free-agent target should be Buddy Boeheim

After years of rebuilding, the Magic have their key pieces now with Franz Wagner and last year’s No. 1 overall pick and 2023 NBA Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero. Now the goal is to put the pieces around them to succeed.

The first step to do that was in the NBA Draft. The team took a big, playmaking, defensive point guard in former Arkansas freshman Anthony Black at pick No. 6. Then, the team needed shooting, and that’s where it got a little dicey.

Kansas sharpshooter Gradey Dick was available at No. 11, but the Magic went with Michigan wing Jett Howard. The son of longtime NBA vet Juwan Howard isn’t quite the shooter that Dick is, but he has more all-around potential. Still, this was a pick that improved the shooting around Banchero and Wagner, and that’s what was needed.

Last season, the Magic were 25th in the league in 3-point shooting percentage at 34.6%. A few players shot decently — over 36% — like Wagner, Cole Anthony, Gary Harris, and Terrance Ross. However, Banchero, Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs, and Bol Bol all shot 32.7% or under.

Bol is gone in NBA free agency, but the others on this list are all coming back. The one Magic free agent that the team did sign, Joe Ingles, is a 40.8% 3-point shooter. He fits the bill perfectly. Ingles is also 35 and will be 36 in October. It’s a nice short-term signing this offseason. It’s not a long-term plan, though.

At this point in NBA free agency and the offseason, there aren’t a lot of knockdown shooters available. There are a few youngsters, though, who were excellent shooters in college and could fill a similar role in the league.6

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Buddy Boeheim, the Syracuse guard and son of longtime Orange head coach Jim Boeheim, is one of those players. Buddy was under contract with the Detroit Pistons last season as an undrafted rookie and played 10 NBA games.

The truth is, he didn’t shoot well. Boeheim took 25 threes in 90 minutes of game time and made just four of them. That’s 16% shooting. That doesn’t tell the whole tale, though. For the Motor City Cruise, the Pistons’ G League affiliate, Boeheim shot 37.4% from deep. He also shot 94.1% from the line.

Those pro stats are on top of his excellent college numbers. At Syracuse, Boeheim shot 36.2% from three over the course of his career, and over 37% in the two seasons he wasn’t the focal point of the offense. He also made over 82% of his free throws.

All this adds up to the fact that Buddy Boeheim is an excellent shooter, and the 6-foot-6 guard just needs the chance to shoot in the NBA. With the Magic, he could get this chance next season.

Orlando does need to act soon, though to get this bargain-bin free agent. While Boeheim is an unrestricted free agent, he is also playing on the Pistons Summer League team in Las Vegas. That team — along with basically every other team in the league — needs 3-point shooting. In the modern NBA, there are few greater commodities.

Boeheim is still just 23, and he fits much better than Ingles with the Magic’s growth trajectory. The team can sign him for a minimum or even a two-way deal and stash him at the beginning of the season if necessary. And when Ingles starts missing games — and he’s missed 73 in the last two seasons — Boeheim could come in and fill that corner 3-point shooter for the team.

The Magic’s free agency play this offseason was to sit relatively tight and keep developing the young players that they have. And now they have a new general manager doing it. Longtime GM John Hammond just stepped into an advisory role, and assistant GM Anthony Parker is taking over.

Parker was on board while the Magic executed this whole Magic free agent strategy this offseason. He knows that young players are the key to what they are doing, and shooting is still the team’s weakness.

Buddy Boeheim helps deal with those two points, which is why he is the Magic bargain-bin free agent still worth targeting.