Orlando Magic’s rookies FIND THEIR FIT in training camp | Rookies’ PATH to playing time

Orlando Magic’s rookies FIND THEIR FIT in training camp | Rookies’ PATH to playing time

Three days into training camp and the rookies are finding their fit, their path to playing time and what they have to do. Is the Magic ready for their first preseason game today on Locked on Magic? You are Locked on Magic, your daily Orlando Magic podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. And you are indeed locked on Magic. Today is October 3rd, 2025. My name is Philip Rossike. I’m the senior writer over at Orlando Magicaily.com, credential member of the Orlando Magic media since the 2012 season. On today’s episode of Lockdown Magic, we’re going to talk about the rookies, Jace Richardson and Noah Penda, how they’re finding their fit with the team, plus their path to playing time. We’ll get to that. Plus, preview Saturday’s game against the Miami Heat. Yeah, there’s a game on Saturday. Crazy. We’ll get to that coming up here in just a moment. But first, we want to thank you again for making Lockdown Magic part of your day every day. No matter when you listen to us, whether it’s first in the morning, whether it’s right when we upload, we truly appreciate you making lockdown magic part of your day every day. You can make locked up magic even bigger part of your day by being one of our Orlando Magic dailies. Listening five days a week, Monday through Friday, sometimes on the weekend. Get in the habit now. That’s what Training Camp is for. Building good habits and listening habits are just as important. Check it all out. It’s all part of Locked On podcast network. It’s your team every day. Today’s episode of Locked On Magic is brought to you by FanDuel. Right now, new customers get bet just $5. And if your bet wins, you’ll get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. Head to fanduel.com to get started. We’re obviously not expecting a lot from the Orlando Magic’s rookies. The Magic picked in the 20s again. They traded their pick in the teens. They picked in the 20s. They grabbed an early second round pick. These picks are supplementary. And look, the Magic need to hit on some of these picks. um you know they’ve traded away a lot of their draft capital now so especially their first round picks like those are cheap easy contracts and so if you can get good players with those play with those picks it’s a good thing so I’m not sitting here saying like oh don’t worry about the draft Jason Richardson’s not important no append is on board no these players are insanely important but we do have to recognize and we do have to acknowledge that they might take a little time. And because the Magic are a much more veteran team, because the Magic have bigger aspirations and don’t have the patience to wait through mistakes, perhaps it’s not as important for them to have good rookie seasons. It’s better more important for them to be better year two, year three, year four down the road. We’ll we’ll get to that. We are three practices in the training camp. Three practices. And as I mentioned yesterday, it’s definitely it’s more than three practices because most of the team is in town for the few weeks before for at least a week before the season. They get a jump start on training camp and and every team does this. It’s not against the rules. You just can’t require everyone to be there. It’s it they it’s largely player organized. It’s it’s fine. And so Jace Richardson and Noah Penda have had some opportunity to run through what the magic are trying to do and run through and get an understanding of, oh, this is the direction we’re trying to go. This is what we’re trying to teach. This is what we’re trying to accomplish. And their job right now is to find their pockets to soak up as much information as they can and see if they can fit in with this team. Again, we are three practices into this thing. We are a very very far way away from the season from from like games counting from where they’re going to be. There is a lot of time before the season begins for these players to get better. We saw how quickly Tristan Dilva got better in his rookie run with the German national team. And again, he’s a rookie going to sophomore year, so he’s a little bit more advanced. Guys could get better really quickly. And so the good news from what we’ve heard and talked about at camp is that Jace Richardson and Noah Penda get the task ahead of them. They are fitting in. They are asking questions. They are engaged with what the Magic are trying to do. They’re encouraged to ask questions. That is something the Magic want them to do because they they need to understand their role if they’re going to play, if they’re going to contribute. And so it’s better to ask questions now in training camp when you can stop, correct, explain than during the regular season when you don’t have the time for that. That’s that’s the crazy part. Like once once the season starts, you’ll practice a little bit more at the beginning of the season. Um toward the end of the season, you’re saving legs, you’re saving bodies, and there are stretches of the season where you’re not practicing, where all you’re doing is watching tape and trying to learn and instruct through tape. And so to have two rookies who are engaged, who want to learn this, who are embracing what the Magic are trying to teach, that is a big deal. That is a big big thing because by all accounts, they are making their mark on the court. Wendo Carter said, Wendell Carter said uh on on Wednesday he’s been very impressed with Jay’s aggression, with his swagger. Even his shooting stood out. Anthony Black has talked about his shooting as well. Jace Richardson has a lot of the offensive skills. And again, like the big thing is, can Jace Richardson overcome his size? Can he finish with the same efficiency at the basket? Can he still be efficient at his size at the NBA level? And we’re not going to know that into practice, even against a really good defensive team like the Magic, but it’s there. Noah Appenda has turned heads with his defense. Several players have said he’s someone that can defend one through five, that he’s eager, and while there’s still a lot to put together, and everyone will admit there’s a lot to put together, he has a lot of tools that get everybody excited. Palanchero said on Tuesday and that was after the first practice that he’s really impressed with what he’s seen from him. Now, that’s not to say they’re ready to play. It’s not to say I I can sit here and say, “Oh, they’re going to be in the rotation.” I don’t believe that. I’m going talk about their path to playing time and how they make their mark and and do more. But this is the start. Like, this is the foundation. This is where everything starts. It starts with asking questions, being engaged. It starts with playing with energy. Huge deal. It starts with showcasing what we know you are good at while staying committed to the team concept and the things the Magic are trying to accomplish. The rookies right now are fitting in and they’re going to get their run in preseason. They’ll probably get more run in preseason than they do at any point. This is their opportunity to make mistakes. This is their opportunity to show how they fit with the other players on the team. This is a, you know, it’s unfair that such a big opportunity comes early in the season this early in the season, particularly as they’re still learning and getting up to speed and figuring out what NBA life is like. But this is the big opportunity. This is their big chance. And and and they’ll get their shot. They’ll get their look at this juncture. The rookies are indeed finding their way. And now, now the question is, are they ready for the NBA? No one’s ready for the NBA. It hits you like a brick. Everybody has their welcome to the NBA moment. We all saw, you know, if we if you watch the Orlando Magic on their Twitter account, they put some some training camp highlights on there and the first one they put on Tuesday was Orlando Robinson blocking a Noah Penda shot and Paulo Ben Carol grabbing the rebound and sort of staring down at him. Jay Switch said during the first day of practice he switched on to Desmond Bane, took a shoulder from Desmond Bane and was like, “Oh, this is a different game.” Desmond Bane is a pretty buff dude. pretty pretty pretty strong to you, especially on the shoulders. They will have their welcome to the NBA moments. They’re going to play catch-up. They’re going to make mistakes. All rookies make mistakes as as I I know I don’t know if Josh Lloyd says it exactly like this on Locked on Fantasy Basketball, but rookies are bad. Rookies are always bad. You want your rookie year to be the worst you will ever be. Rookies are bad. That’s just how it is. They’re going to make mistakes, and it’s about your eagerness to learn from those mistakes. your eagerness, your your ability to wash those off and get back into the game. For now, Jayce Richardson and Noah Pendis seem to be doing everything the Magic want. The question is whether that will get them on the court. So, let’s talk the path to playing time for both of the Magic’s rookies and whether the Magic even want them to play this year. We’ll get to that coming up here in just a moment. But first, today’s episode of Lockdown Magic is brought to our friends over at Monarch Money. Most people cannot name all their financial accounts or even what they’re worth, whether it’s 401ks, properties, or investments. When you re when you don’t have the full picture, you can end up leaving money on the table. That’s why there is Monarch Money. It’s an all-in-one personal finance tool that brings your entire financial life together in one clean, easytouse interface on your laptop or your phone. 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That’s 50% off your first year at monarchmoney.com with code locked on NBA. Right now, I do not have either Jace Richardson or Noah Penda on my two deep depth chart. They are outside of a nine and and even a 10-man rotation. Now, Jaylen Suggs’s injury could bring one of them into the I would bet Jace Richardson. To be perfectly honest, I think Jace Richardson is just a little further developed. The roster opens up for him. the Magic would need a point guard if Tai Jones has a start. Um, you know, Anthony Black is kind of a point guard, kind of not. Um, so I I think there is I think it would not shock me if Jace Richardson is in the early season rotation. It wouldn’t shock me if the Magic decide to go big and Anthony Black is your backup point guard. Um, playing alongside, you know, maybe I don’t know who would play the two at that in that instance, but playing alongside like Tristan Dilva, you get Jonathan Isaac Noapenda together. Um, you know, certainly I think there’s a potential for a Wendell Carter Govat lineup. Maybe not while Mov’s out, but I do think that’s something the Magic will try considering, you know, they could face the Houston Rockets in the NBA finals. They could face the New York Knicks who are starting Mitchell Robinson and Carl Anthony Towns together, the Miami Heat Start Bam Adabio and Kell Wear together. The Cavs have Evan Mobley and Jared Allen. So, we’ll get to funky lineups a little bit later in the preseason. So, you know, don’t worry. We’re going to talk about some funky lineups and ways the Magic can continue to experiment as the season begins. But right now, beyond just like the depth chart, the path to playing time for both of these players is actually quite simple. Whenever they get their opportunity, and they’re going to get their opportunity in preseason, they will play a lot in the preseason. They’ll they’ll finish games. They’ll play fourth quarters whenever they get their opportunity. They have to play with energy first and foremost. You have to feel them on the court. And their job, they’re not going to be top scorers. Their job is to make their presence felt with their energy. You know, using your energy in a positive way. No one should outwork any of these players. The next step, of course, and the most important step, honestly, is their defense. Jayce Richardson especially has to consistently and continually prove himself on defense. It is unfair to him. We saw him at summer league. He is an energetic defender. I I I’m not as concerned with his defense, but he’s small and he knows it. He knows he has to make up for his height deficiency somewhere. And when I asked Jace Richardson, what is the role that that Jamal Mosley’s talked with you about? out and he said, “Well, first and foremost, I need to defend because Jamal explained to to me, Jason Richardson said this. Jamal explained that we’re not a team that tries to defend. We are a team that actually defends. And if you’re too much of a weak link on defense, you’re not going to play.” We we talked a million times about this with Jed Howard. We talked a million times about this with Goa. honestly that players who are out of position on defense, you know, don’t give that second extra effort. They they don’t play and like go doesn’t do that, but you know, Jet has had some defensive issues and that’s that’s an area he has to improve if he wants to play or when he gets his opportunity, he has to improve on. This is the area that Jace has to make his mark first. Yes, the shot feels pretty good. Yes, we know his scoring acumen and his ability to get to his spots and get to the ring. But if there’s a reason why I I feel more confident in Noah Penda taking on a role and you know like let’s you know let’s say Jonathan Isaac has to miss some games. No Penda I have no issue with Noah Penda playing that spot because Noa is going to defend. Now how consistent will he be? How how much will he be able to give you on offense? That is the bigger question with him. But no append is going to defend and defend multiple positions and defend them pretty well. And if that’s the case, the Magic are going to find use for him. Like I I’m honestly kind of the opinion that they’re going to have a hard time keeping Penn off the floor. And you know, again, like I think Jace is more developed offensively and more refined, but at the end of the day, Jayce still has to overcome a pretty significant weakness to be effective and be a a player for this Magic team. That’s not to say he can’t do it. That’s not to say that he won’t try. That’s not to say that he can’t make up some of this ground. But Case has a lot of work to do. And and again, he acknowledges that. He knows that. He knows he has to prove himself continuously and constantly on that end. And you know, again, I I I will give credit like you know, Cole Anthony was the same way. You’re he’s going to try. He’s not going to just not try. He may not be effective. He’s going to have to find ways to be effective. He’s gonna have to find his niche and find his deal. And it might be picking up guys 94 feet. It might be taking advice from Jaylen Suggs and Anthony Black on on where how to use his hands and how to try and corral bigger guards because every guard’s going to be bigger than him. But he’s going to try and and and we saw that at summer league particularly. He’s going to give himself the opportunity. He’s going to he’s going to put himself in good defensive positions, but that’s that’s his path to playing time. That’s the only thing that’s going to determine whether he can get into the rotation and stick it stick with it, especially if his offense is as good as the team is buzzing about. At the end of the day, that’s the path to playing time for every player. There is just no room for guys who are not going to fit in defensively and put in the effort on defense with this team. And so again, like I don’t think Jace or Noah are are in the in the rotation um when this team’s fully healthy. Again, 10-man rotation, I think a 10-man rotation is going to be a little bit of a stretch. But the way Tristan Dilva played at Euro Basket, if that carries over, they’ll go 10-man. As long as they have one starter on the floor at all times or one of the big four at all times, I think they’ll be fine. But they they’ll probably start the season with a 10-man rotation. And it’s probably gonna be when they’re healthy, Jaylen Suggs, Desmond Bane, Fron Sagner, Palo Beno, Wendo Carter with Anthony Black, Taius Jones, Tristan D Silva, Jonathan Isaac, and Wend and Mo Vager or Goa Batz depending whenever Mo’s healthy. That’s probably their 10-man group. Jace Noah, Jet, and again, one of Mo or Goa are on the outside. Now, obviously, there will be injuries, there will be absences, there will be times when the match need to try something a little bit different. Um, you got to have faith in all 15 all 14 guys on the roster, 15 when when we get there. Um, they’ll, you know, we’ll get to a point where they will look at their roster, say, “We need this.” And they’ll add that 15th player. Um, they just can’t right now because it would take them over the the apron. Um, which they’re not allowed to go over. Hard caps are hard cap. Um, but so like there’s some jumbling obviously. Jaylen Thugs out of the rotation. I think Jason is gonna get his opportunity and he’s gonna have to show that he can defend because everybody in this league is going to test him. Everybody in the league is going to test him and that’ll be the biggest challenge for him in his rookie season. That test begins Saturday. Yes, we have a preseason game on Saturday in San Juan Puerto Rico. We’ll talk about what to expect in that opening preseason game against the Miami Heat. We’ll get to that coming up here in just a moment. But first, today’s episode of Lockdown Magic is brought to our friends over at FanDuel. The NFL season is here, and FanDuel has an offer you do not want to miss. Right now, new customers can bet just $5 and get 300 in bonus bets if you win. That’s right. Pick a bet, put down five bucks, and if it hits, you’ll unlock $300 in bonus bets to use across the app on FanDuel. You can find you can find anything any kind of bet you’re thinking about. Whether you’re trying to build a parlay, whether you’re doing player props, whether you’re just trying to pick a game, they’re all there for you. On the NFL slate this Sunday, you can find the Miami Dolphins at the Carolina Panthers. The Dolphins favored by a point and a half. They beat teams under 500. There’s a that that could be a win for them perhaps. The Tampa Buccaneers are three-point dogs at Seattle. And of course, the Jacksonville Jaguars hosting the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football. They are threepoint underdogs at home to the to the Kansas City Chiefs. So, you have that to look at. NBA lines are starting to come out, too. In fact, in fact, Saturday night, if you’re so if you’re such a sicko, if you’re such a degenerate, the Magic are favored by four points over the Miami Heat in in that game in San. So, we’re talk about that in a minute. Magic are favored by four. Don’t bet preseason games, you you sicko. Whether you’re a casual fan or love diving into stats, FanDuel can make the game day experience so much better. Just not for preseason games. Just don’t do it. So, what are you waiting for? Visit fanuel.com to download the FanDuel app today and get started. As I mentioned, the Orlando Magic open their preseason on Saturday against the Miami Heat in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Um, it is a little early for a preseason game. Usually the Magic kind of get through the first week. They’ll they usually take like that Friday off or that Saturday off. They do five days, take Saturday off, then they’ll play a game like on a Monday or Tuesday. Orlando always structures its preseason the same way. They play their two road games first, then they come back home and play two home games. So, you know, I think the Magic play the Sixer the Sixers in Philadelphia next Friday. Um, looking that up. Yep. Next Friday. Then they’ll play the Heat at home on the 12th and then the I believe the Pelicans at home on the 16th to close their preseason. Then the season’s going to be so we’re just you know three weeks away from the regular season starting opening against the Miami Heat. So this first preseason game I I I I want to really stress result doesn’t matter. I don’t care who wins or loses. I I I would like to see the starters win their minutes. I think those matter. at this point, you know, they’ll be five practices in, five practices, no shoot around. Um, I just want to get a sense of how this team’s going to function. I at this stage of the preseason, I just want to see like some consistency and some glimpses. Like, I’m expecting a lot of turnovers. Now, Magic has typically done good with turnovers in the preseason. So, maybe that that maybe that’s a low bar, but I’m not gonna go go crazy about a lot of turnovers or a lot of guys who are just maybe not quite on the same page yet, especially considering we are expecting some changes to this offense. Not just changes to the offense in the fact that like Desmond Bane is here and we expect him to make a lot of threes and take a lot of threes. Um, change of the offense in that the Magic have said all camp long, we are trying to run. We’re trying to play faster. We’re trying to get out in transition more. We’re trying to use our defense to convert to our offense. And so, I would expect a few more turnovers as they’re kind of getting a feel for how fast they can play and and what they can do there. So, the number one thing that I’m looking at in this game against the Miami Heat, the number one thing that I’m thinking about first is is just are they playing at a quicker pace? Like I like I don’t care if they’re turning the ball over too much. Don’t care if they’re throwing the ball all over the place. I just want to see faster actions. They’ve been saying they want to do it and and like I’m sorry like I I’m kind like I’m usually an optimist. I’m usually like oh I’ll take you at your word on this. I’m scoffing a little bit at this at the everyone saying this because they say this every year and like last year the Magic had the slowest pace in the league and that was obviously adjusting to some of the injuries and and you know the way Powell likes to play. I’ve just kind of been in of the opinion that like I will believe it when I see it. I will believe the Magic are going to be a faster team and run a lot more when I see it work on the floor. Now, obviously, like you can’t run in transition if you’re not forcing turnovers, if you’re not defending. So, I do expect the Magic, you know, if they foul a lot, so what? Like, you know, again, timing stuff I’m not worried about. So, like turnovers, even shooting to some extent, like I want to see them get good shots, but I’m not going to freak out if they’re not making threes. like like if Desmond G Bane goes 0 for seven or like one for seven, I’m not going to freak out. They’re played at a weird gym. They’re uh you know that that if that means anything. Um timing and rhythm things I’m not going to worry about. So like if if they foul a lot, if they turn the ball over a lot, if they’re not making open threes, I care more about the process than the results at this stage of the preseason. And so, like, yes, I want to see the defense play well, but if they foul, they foul. If they’re just a late on a rotation, that’s expected at this point. And I know I say this every year. I want to see the Magic be better in the second preseason game than the first. You know, better than third and the second, fourth and third. I just want to see them progressively get better and more precise and tighter as we get closer to the season. This game is early. Like I I honestly if I were Jamal Mosley, the game’s on the schedule. You you you do the schedule. I would not be super thrilled about a game this early. And again, they’re going to have another, you know, they’re taking Sunday off to travel back to Orlando. They’re going to have another four days of practice before the next preseason game. So, it’s a continuation of camp. This is going to be just kind of a little This is essentially a minor checkup. And again, Miami is going through the same issue. So, so they will be just as sloppy. Um, and they got a lot more new pieces and and everything else. They will be just as sloppy as Orlando. So, again, worry more about process than results. It’s really important that you watch the game and don’t box score watch the game. Um, because you’ll get a feel for what they’re trying to do. And look, I am I am as I I’m a data person. Like like I I I need to see this. Like you know, we’re sitting in we’re sitting in train we’re sitting in training camp. We’re trying to ask questions. We’re trying to figure out what’s going on behind closed doors and it’s just like I have no clue. Like I I don’t even know. I I don’t even know the right questions to ask because I don’t know what they’re trying to do. So I want to see it. When I see it, I can say, “Oh, you you tried this thing or you oh, you got a lot of corner threes. That’s interesting. That’s new. Magic always get a lot of corner threes in preseason gets me really excited and then they don’t get as many in the regular season. Um they’re just things that you know are going to be preseason basketball and you just excuse them and move on and then they’ll you’ll find some things that’ll be like oh this this this is something we actually need to pay attention. This is actually something that we should be focused on. And so again like I’m not expecting some crazy game. I’m not expecting like them blowing the doors off like they did in the first game against Miami last year. I am expecting them to look coherent for stretches. Like again, I just I just want to see the vision. I want to see like, oh, this is what we’re trying to do. And we didn’t get that a lot last year in the preseason because of the hurricane, because of some early injuries in the in the in the in the preseason. Like, we didn’t get a full sense of what they were going to do. Um then again like you know they they played a really strong first half against New Orleans in that opener and then struggled in the second half and and Zion looked really good and you know how much can you really put in any of this? So again like three things I want to focus on process over results. Are they doing the right things? Are they getting good shots in the moments of clarity? Do they look like we imagined them to? The defensive effort has to be there. Um you know defensive focus and attention. a lot of the matches early focus is on defense and then are they actually trying to run? Are they trying to run off their turnovers? Are they trying to get out in transition? And if they make mistakes in transition, if they’re turning the ball over in transition, if they’re missing some open shots, that’s timing and rhythm. That’ll get better as the preseason goes on hopefully. But we’ll see what we get on Saturday. And again, don’t take it as gospel. We’ll break it all down. I I’ll I will tell you on and it’ll be either be Saturday night when I get back from the UCF game. So, could be another late It could be a late episode Saturday night. Um or I’ll be watching a game from the UCF press box. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry for my friends. I I cover UCF for the AP. So, I’ll be keeping an eye on the game there and and if I feel comfortable, I’ll jump on here Saturday night. If not, I may try and rewatch the game and and and get a get a good get a better glimpse of it uh before I before I make any comments. So, you’ll you’ll get an episode Saturday or Sunday breaking down the game. Um it’ll either be late Saturday or early Sunday. Um we’ll we’ll we’ll I’ll make sure you know what’s important. So that that’s the bottom line. I’ll make sure you know what’s important and so we’ll break down that game. We’ll we’ll we’ll get we’ll get some data. We’ll begin to understand this team and we’ll push forward from there. But that’s going to do it for me today. I want to thank you all again for listening to today’s episode of Lockdown Magic. Of course, find me on Twitter, Philip RR_MD, and on Blue Sky, Philip RR. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple podcast that you’re tuned in on, Google Play, Spotify, Odyssey, and all podcast to your podcast enabled listening device. For the latest on the Orland, you can check us out as well on YouTube. Just search for lockdown magic. For the latest on the Orlando Magic, be sure to check out Orlando Magicaily.com. You can find us on Twitter, Omagic Daily. And for even more Orlando Magic content, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter at patreon.com/orlandomagicub. As always, thank you for your support. Now that you’re done making Lockdown Magic your first listen of the day, go check out the Locked On Fantasy Basketball Podcast. Josh Lloyd hosts the number one fantasy basketball podcast, giving you daily tips and helping you win your league, all while making you a smarter NBA fan. Earlier this week, he did a full Orlando Magic fantasy basketball preview. I jumped on his show during the summer to preview the Magic as well. Great great content for your fantasy basketball players and really just a different perspective to look at the season. Um, even though he has a fantasy focus, he does talk a lot about the way teams play and what to expect. So, it’s definitely a good focus to to have as well. Find Locked On Fantasy Basketball on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcast, all part of Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. And and Josh, I do promise I’m going to get you that Barbara Bander jersey very, very soon. I have no excuses. I’m at the arena. I’m at that training center every day. It’s gonna happen. I’m sorry it’s taking so long. Um, before we sign off today, wishing uh a hearty good luck and now that my links have been eliminated from the playoffs, cheering very very hard for Nate Tibbitz and the Phoenix Mercury. I don’t know if Locked on Suns is covering the Mercury’s WNBA finals, but very, very, very, very excited to see Coach Tibbitz uh lead the Mercury. Tibbitz, of course, was an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic for the first two years of Jamal Mosley’s tenure. left for left for the uh Mercury in the summer of 20 or in the training camp of the 2024 season. Coached the 2024 season, coached this season, the second season with the Mercury, leading them to the WNBA finals. They play crazy good defense. They look very, very much like the Orlando Magic. They’ve been a lot of fun to watch this postseason. So, good luck to our friends with the Phoenix Mercury. Although, I’m I’m still not happy they eliminated my links, but uh bygones will be bygones and we’re all good cheer for Nate Tibbitz here down the stretch. Plus, we don’t want the Aces to win another championship. They they’ve won they’ve won too many and and they’re not the links, so they can’t be a dynasty. But that’s going to do it for me today. I want to thank you all again for listening to today’s episode of Lockdown Magic. Again, we will be back either late Saturday or early Sunday to recap the Magic preseason opener over the Miami Heat. Until then, for Orlando Magic daily and locked on Magic, this has been Philip Ross. Mike, we’ll see you all again next time for another episode of Locked On Magic.

Orlando Magic rookies Jase Richardson and Noah Penda are making waves in training camp. But both have a lot to learn to crack the rotation and contribute this season.

Both players have been eager to learn. That is the first step. The next step is playing with energy and contributing on defense, the key to any player getting time for the Magic this season.

They will get their chance as the Magic open their preseason Saturday against the Miami Heat. It will be an early test and checkup on the Magic’s identity and the changes they hope to make this season.

0:00 Intro: Rookies finding their fit in training camp
5:45 Rookies impressing coaches and teammates early on
11:22 Path to playing time for Richardson and Penda
17:31 Projected 10-man rotation when team is healthy
23:14 What to watch for in first preseason game

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