Orlando Magic guard RJ Hampton is set to become a free agent next summer. The Magic exercised their third-year options in Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs, along with fourth-year options in Cole Anthony and Chuma Okeke.
However, Hampton’s $4,220,057 club option for the 2023-24 season will not be picked up. This is part of the four-year, $11.13 million rookie-scale contract the guard signed with the Denver Nuggets in 2020.
Some NBA betting sites are giving Orlando the fifth-lowest odds to win the championship in 2023. With the Magic now 1-5, a couple of sportsbooks are dropping their chances of making the postseason.
press release:@OrlandoMagic Exercise group options on @The_ColeAnthony, @chuma_okeke, @jalensuggs And @franzboogie
All four players are signed until the 2023-24 season#Magic together pic.twitter.com/910Co3r2s9
— Orlando Magic PR (@Magic_PR) October 29, 2022
The NBA deadline for contracts that include 2023-24 team picks is Monday, Oct. 31. For those wondering, the front office could re-sign Hampton next summer. If not, he will be an unrestricted free agent.
Last October, the Magic exercised his $2.41 million guard option for this season.
Hampton was selected 24th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2020 NBA Draft. Four days later, the Bucks traded the former National Basketball League (NBL) star to the Nuggets.
The Magic will not exercise RJ Hampton’s 2023-24 option, which would allow him to become a free agent next summer.
In his rookie season, he averaged 2.6 points and 2 rebounds in 25 games off the bench with Denver. He also shot 41.7% from the field and 27.8% from beyond the arc.
In March 2021, the Nuggets traded Hampton to the Magic. In 26 games, the guard averaged 11.2 points, 5 boards and 2.8 assists per game. He also shot 43.9% from the floor and 31.9% from 3-point range.
To clarify, RJ Hampton is set to become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) this offseason.
The Magic could still re-sign him as a free agent. https://t.co/QaNJSM24Qf
– Khobi Price (@khobi_price) October 29, 2022
Hampton was then named the NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for May. Of course, in It is the first time a Magic player has won the award since Elfrid Payton in 2015.
Last season, in 64 games, RJ Hampton averaged 7.6 points, 3 rebounds and 2.5 assists. So far, the 21-year-old is not living up to expectations.
In the year On April 10, 2022, the guard scored a game-high 21 points in 33 minutes of action in the Magic’s 125-111 win over the Miami Heat. He finished 8 of 16 (50%) from the floor and 4 of 7 (57.1%) from downtown.
