Magic Notes: KCP, F. Wagner, Suggs, Carter

After converting 40.3% of his three-point attempts from 2019-24, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope struggled with his shot in his first season with the Magic, making just 34.2% of his outside looks — the third-lowest mark of his career.

Caldwell-Pope, who signed a three-year, $66MM contract with the Magic last offseason, conceded his shooting wasn’t up to par in 2024/25, according to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel.

“Not as I expected for my performance,” Caldwell-Pope said. “I finished a little solid, but shooting-wise that could be a lot better. That goes into a lot. I thought my season was pretty good despite everything we’ve been through.”

As Beede notes, injuries to Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs, among others, made it difficult for Caldwell-Pope to consistently find the types of looks he likes, particularly since he was playing with new teammates. The veteran shooting guard won’t have to worry about free agency this summer, so he plans to spend more time in the gym honing his craft.

“I felt like I was a little bit more stagnant this year as far as not moving to get open or find open windows to be able to get those shots,” he said. “For me, just this summer, getting more attempts at the rim and being able to just shoot all summer.”

Here’s more on the Magic:

• Despite tearing a right abdominal muscle, which cost him 20 games, Franz Wagner posted career-best counting stats in ’24/25 and likely would have been an All-Star for the first time had he not been injured, Beede writes for The Orlando Sentinel. “I was put into a little bit of a new spot when Paolo went out and looking back on it, I handled it pretty well,” Wagner said. “I was pleased with how I was playing then. For me, the injury was at a terrible time because I felt like we were rolling as a team. But that’s how it goes sometimes. I handled it well — the injury and the rehab stuff. I played a decent second half of season, got better at a couple of things and also saw a couple of things I need to improve on.”
• Suggs, who has dealt with numerous injuries over the course of his four NBA seasons, was limited to a career-low 35 games in ’24/25 due to back, quad and knee injuries. He recently discussed a number of topics at his end-of-season media availability, including his approach to the game and how his rehab is going, as Beede relays.
• Like many members of the Magic, big man Wendell Carter struggled with his long-range shot this season. After making 35.1% of his threes over the previous three seasons, he made just 23.4% in ’24/25. He said rediscovering his outside touch will be a high priority this offseason (story via Beede). “Become that knockdown shooter I was a year or two ago, and be in the best shape of my life,” Carter said of his plans for the summer. “There’s a lot of goals I have for myself going into this next season … [including] being able to play as many games as possible, but also being at the top of my game.”