A report earlier today indicated that the Magic were close to losing their rights to second-round draft pick Romero Osby, but the team has offered Osby a deal in advance of Friday's deadline for them to do so, HoopsWorld's Steve Kyler tweets. That echoes what Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel wrote this weekend about the Magic's plan to bring Osby aboard. Teams have until September 6th each year to make an offer of at least the rookie minimum salary to their second-round picks from the June draft. Otherwise, the players become free agents. Osby and the Magic will likely reach agreement on a contract at some point soon, according to Kyler, who adds that both sides have interest in getting a deal done (Twitter links).
The Magic drafted Osby 51st overall out of the University of Oklahoma. The 6'7" 23-year-old played out of position for the Sooners, and that hurt his draft stock, Kyler says (on Twitter). He averaged 16.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in his senior year, and he put up 11.0 PPG and 4.4 RPG in 21.1 minutes per contest with the Magic's summer league team.
Orlando has 14 players under contract, but only 12 of those deals are fully guaranteed, so it seems like there's plenty of room for Osby, even given the team's apparent interest in Devin Ebanks. The Magic would lose Osby's rights if they bring him to training camp and cut him, so if they sign him, he'll likely remain with the team into the regular season.