Believe in Magic: Orlando drains assets, trades for Grizzlies star guard Desmond Bane

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The Orlando Magic make a massive gamble for the sake of title contention in the NBA's Eastern Conference, shipping a staggering 4 first-round picks and 2 key players to the Memphis Grizzlies for star guard Desmond Bane

The Orlando Magic are acquiring guard Desmond Bane from the Memphis Grizzlies in a blockbuster deal, ESPN reported Sunday (Monday, June 16, Manila time).

In return, Memphis will receive guards Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Cole Anthony, four unprotected first-round picks and one first-round pick swap, per the report.

Bane, 26, was the No. 30 overall pick of the 2020 NBA Draft and spent five seasons with the Grizzlies. He has career averages of 17.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.8 assists over 29.6 minutes per game.

In 2024-25, he exceeded those numbers with 19.2 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists. He shot 39.2 percent from 3-point-territory.

A 6-foot-5 shooting guard, Bane has faced injury woes the past three seasons, limited to just 58 games in 2022-23, followed by seasons with 42 and 69 games.

Caldwell-Pope, 32, will provide veteran leadership for the Grizzlies. Now 32, he was selected No. 8 overall in the 2013 draft and has two NBA titles on his resume, playing for the Detroit Pistons (2013-17), Los Angeles Lakers (2017-21), Washington Wizards (2021-22), Denver Nuggets (2022-24) and Magic.

He has career averages of 11.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 912 games. In 2024, those numbers were 8.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 77 games.

Anthony, 25, was taken by Orlando with the No. 15 overall pick in the 2020 draft. In five seasons and 320 games with the Magic, he has averages of 12.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists.

Bane had signed a five-year, $197.2 million contract extension with the Grizzlies in July of 2023 and is under contract through the 2028-29 season. – Rappler.com