ORLANDO, Fla. — Watching Terrence Ross this upcoming season probably will feel a bit jarring for fans, at least at first.
After wearing No. 31 throughout his NBA career, he has switched his jersey number to No. 8. The change will require some getting used to.
For Ross, the switch will fulfill a longtime ambition — and will give him yet another thing in common with his son, Tristan.
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Years ago, Ross made a promise to himself: He would change his jersey number from 31, which he wore in college, to the number where he was selected in the NBA Draft.
The Toronto Raptors chose him eighth overall in 2012, and he would have asked the Raptors for the number right then. There was just one problem: José Calderón, Toronto’s veteran point guard, wore No. 8.
In 2017, the Raptors traded Ross to the Magic, and Ross was prepared to change numbers. Again, though, someone already had No. 8. It belonged to Mario Hezonja.
When Ross and the Magic recently agreed on a new four-year contract worth a total of $50 million in base salary, Ross finally saw his opportunity.
And he gives an assist to 4-year-old Tristan.
“This past month, my son started a new basketball team, and the jersey he got was No. 8,” Ross told reporters in Orlando after he re-signed with the Magic. “So I was like, ‘That’s the sign for me to really try to switch it one last time.’ This time I finally got it.”
It represents a new path for Ross.
Thirty-one always carried special significance within his family. His mom, Marcine Parker, wore 31 throughout high school and during her successful college career as a power forward at Cal Poly Pomona. Terrence’s sister, Taelor Ross, donned 31 at Seattle University. And Terrence’s younger brother, Drew Parker, has worn 31 in AAU games.
Now, with No. 8, Terrence and Tristan might be starting a new tradition all their own.
Mo grows
The Magic’s five NBA Summer League games felt anticlimactic.
With 2019 first-round pick Chuma Okeke recovering from April reconstructive knee surgery and second-year swingman Melvin Frazier Jr. recuperating from a stress fracture in his right shin, almost all of the attention focused on second-year center Mo Bamba.
The Summer League practices and games were important for Bamba because he had missed the final two and a half months of his rookie season due to a stress fracture in his left shin.
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Bamba participated in the Magic’s opening practices in Las Vegas and then played in the team’s earthquake-shortened Summer League opener on July 5. In 15 minutes, he knocked off some rust, scoring 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting. He also gathered two rebounds.
Then came something more unexpected than the earthquake: The Magic decided to hold Bamba out of their remaining Summer League games because Bamba was feeling general soreness. Team officials stressed Bamba was not injured and was not sore in his lower left leg. Instead, the Magic were just being ultracautious.
Bamba said he still considered his brief Las Vegas stint successful.
“I honestly feel like I accomplished a lot,” Bamba said. “A lot of it was just the mental (side) going into it. I didn’t know exactly how I would respond going into practices and everything with being out so long, but I think I overcame a lot of adversity just by being out there.”
Bamba now will continue with the work he was doing prior to the Summer League: He’ll keep working out with the team’s strength-and-conditioning staff and with assistant coach Mike Batiste. Then, in late September, the team will begin its training camp.
Earlier this month, the Magic re-signed Khem Birch, the 26-year-old center who helped invigorate the second unit after Bamba’s stress fracture was diagnosed.
How the Magic will distribute minutes when starting center Nikola Vucevic is off the court will be a storyline to monitor throughout the 2019-20 season. Still, it is difficult to envision any scenario in which a healthy Bamba would not receive playing time.
For what it’s worth, the Magic’s 2020 Summer League team should be more interesting to follow than this summer’s squad was. Okeke, Frazier and the Magic’s 2020 draft picks likely will be on Orlando’s roster next year.
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Two-way insurance
The Magic have reached an agreement with point guard Josh Magette on a two-way contract.
You can argue that Magette’s upcoming signing is a lost opportunity for the Magic. Teams may have a maximum of two players on two-way contracts at any single time, and, ideally, those two-way deals would go to prospects who have some potential to develop into NBA-level players.
Magette does not seem to have much developmental upside. After all, he will turn 30 in November, and he has only 18 games of regular-season NBA experience.
So why will the Magic sign Magette?
That remains unclear. Team officials cannot comment until the contract is official.
But part of the decision is no doubt to bolster the Magic’s G-League affiliate in Lakeland. Magette is a solid passer and distributor who does not take a lot of shots. He should put Lakeland’s younger players in positions to succeed.
Perhaps having Magette on a two-way deal will provide some insurance in case Markelle Fultz is not ready to play at the beginning of the regular season. The Magic already have incumbent starter D.J. Augustin on the roster and the recently re-signed Michael Carter-Williams.
If Fultz is ready to play, Augustin and Fultz no doubt would occupy the top two spots on Orlando’s depth chart at point guard.
But if Fultz is not ready to play, it would be helpful for the Magic to have someone available as another option if Augustin or Carter-Williams suffer a minor injury. Magette can fill that void if necessary.
Magic officials viewed re-signing Carter-Williams as an opportunity regardless of Fultz’s health. Carter-Williams is an outstanding defender who also helped the second unit play at a faster pace last season. Because of Carter-Williams’ length, rebounding and defensive acumen, he could play alongside Augustin or Fultz at times this season.
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Coach Steve Clifford is excited to have Carter-Williams back.
Clifford recently reviewed film of the Magic’s late-season games and marveled at Carter-Williams’ defensive ability, motor and smarts.
“Defensively, there’s nights when he’s spectacular,” Clifford said. “He can guard ones, twos and many threes. He can contain the ball and pressure the ball without getting beat and steal the ball, and there’s just not many guys that can do that.”
(Top photo of Al-Farouq Aminu, Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross: Fernando Medina / NBAE via Getty Images)