Detroit Pistons: Which bad team has the best young core?
Detroit Pistons: Ranking the young cores of the bad teams
#4: Orlando Magic
Young core
- Paolo Banchero
- Cole Anthony
- Franz Wagner
- Jalen Suggs
- Markelle Fultz
- Mo Bamba
- Wendell Carter Jr.
- Jonathan Isaac
The Magic have an impressive amount of young talent on their roster, with just one player (Terrence Ross) over 25-years-old.
I do think people sleep on Anthony and Wagner a bit, and it’s possible that both of them will make an All-Star team or more in their careers, particularly Wagner, who is only 20-years old.
The Magic’s future will come down to how good Paolo Banchero is, whether Anthony and Wagner continue to improve, and the play of their two wildcard guards.
Related Story. "Grant Hill with a jump shot?" No, not really.. light
Can Fultz actually stay healthy? What does Suggs look like in year two? Coming out of college, both of these guys were considered two of the best guards in their class. Fultz hasn’t been able to stay on the floor and Suggs only played 48 games as a rookie, so it’s too early to tell what he is going to be.
The Magic have an exciting future, with some high-end talent flanked by a whole lot of promising young role players who could be more.
3: Houston Rockets
Young core
- Jalen Green
- Jabari Smith
- Kevin Porter Jr.
- Alperun Sengun
- Tari Eason
- TyTy Washington
The Houston Rockets have arguably the best duo with Jalen Green and Jabari Smith, as both project as high-end scorers.
There is a pretty big drop-off after that though, as Kevin Porter Jr. has been inconsistent, though his shooting efficiency did go up last season.
I do love Tari Eason, and picked him as my sleeper of the 2022 Draft. Usman Garuba and Josh Christopher could both be players as well, so Houston is pretty deep with young potential.
But they get the spot mostly because of the two guys at the top of the list, both who have a chance to make multiple All-Star teams at some point in their careers. Based on what he started doing at the end of last season, Jalen Green might be there sooner rather than later, as he scored 25+ in seven of his last eight games.