2022 Orlando Magic Player Outlook: E’Twaun Moore has plenty left, but will remain limited

E’Twaun Moore wanted to be back with the Phoenix Suns.

Who wouldn’t with the future that team projects to have and is growing into at this point? Moore told The Arizona Republic earlier this week he thought he would be back with the Suns again this season.

But, as things do in free agency, spots filled up fast. The Suns did not reach the top of the mountain. And despite their relative youth, they had to find a way to move forward.

In what was probably a familiar feeling, among the players the Suns added to their guard depth was Elfrid Payton, back for a second run in Phoenix. Moore was cast off yet again.

And even though he was at the end of the bench with the Suns last year, Moore still should feel like he has plenty left in the tank.

E’Twaun Moore’s career is starting to wind down. But he has plenty still to give the Orlando Magic as they begin their rebuild with a young roster.

He is not far removed from being a regular starter with a young New Orleans Pelicans team. But Moore is also going to be a critical veteran for this group. He is going to have to push and challenge players in practice and keep in their ear about keeping up good habits.

Moore is back in a place he can call one of his basketball homes. And, like most veterans, he is going to be pushing to play and not give an inch to the young players.

That is the tricky balance that he — and many of the Magic veterans — will have to wrestle with this year.

They are vital to the culture Jamahl Mosley is trying to build. But their presence on the court may be a negative to the growth the team ultimately wants to see.

Moore should be good enough to play on a team like the Magic — they are not the star-powered, championship-hungry Suns. But if he plays too much, that might suggest problems with the young players the Magic have opted to build around.

That makes it much more difficult to evaluate and project what Moore should be.

The veteran guard still ahs plenty to contribute, but it is also clear his career is winding down in the NBa.

Moore averaged 4.9 points per game in 27 games last year. He played in only 14.4 minutes per game in those limited appearances. So it was hardly a large enough sample size to say much of anything about him.

In 2020 with the New Orleans Pelicans, he averaged 8.3 points per game in 18.2 minutes per game. His effective field goal percentage dipped below 50.0-percent for the first time in four seasons (he finished at 50.0-percent even last year in that small sample size).

Moore averaged 11.9 points per game and shot 43.2-percent from deep in 2019 with the Pelicans.

There is certainly some sign that Moore is slowing down. But he is still valuable for whatever minutes the team throws at him. He should be able to hit consistently from the outside and even make plays off the dribble in limited circumstances.

Moore enjoyed being a supporting player for the Suns last year and he figures to do that again.Magic need Jalen Suggs to fill in their weaknesses

It helps too that Moore is getting a second run with the Magic — he averaged 7.1 points per game on a 46.9-percent effective field goal percentage in 154 games in 2013 and 2014.

But Moore has been through a lot and will play a far different role. Rather than being the young player trying to prove himself and make it on a roster that is seeking its way to win, he returns as the veteran who has been through the league’s ringer and has his experience to share.

As he said in his interview with the Arizona Republic, Moore kept a home in Orlando and never really left (as happens with so many players who cycle into and out of Orlando).

But Moore is clear about what his goals are, as he told Duane Rankin:

"“First and foremost, just coming in and bringing veteran leadership and experience and helping the young guys out,” Moore said. “This is a young team. I talked to Jamahl Mosley about just coming in and helping and bringing that leadership on the court and off the court in that locker room. Having that locker room presence also. That’s something I actually enjoy doing. Helping see people grow. Helping others get better while at the same time still being able to play. I still can play at a high level.”"

That is certainly the best way to distill his role with this team. He is here to be a guiding hand in the locker room more than a player on the court.

E’Twaun Moore may very well be more like the break-glass-in-case-of-emergency player that Dwayne Bacon was supposed to be last season.

Orlando signed the scoring wing in Bacon last year as an end-of-bench player to provide some scoring and an offensive threat. The only reason he played so much and started 50-plus games was because the team faced so many significant injuries.

E’Twaun Moore could be put in a similar spot to Willie Green during his lone year in Orlando in 2015.

Green appeared in 52 games and averaged 18.3 minutes per game that season. He posted 5.9 points per game and shot a 45.4-percent effective field goal percentage.

Fans were frustrated that Green, who was playing in what turned out to be his final year in the NBA, was getting playing time over younger players while the team was in the midst of a rebuild.

Those complaints will likely resurface some if Moore — or really any veteran — is playing too much throughout the season.

That is, of course, unfair. The Magic want to create a culture where playing time is earned rather than given.

And judging from the quote above, Moore understands that he is there to help out more in practice and preparation than on the court.

That will still leave the uncomfortable reality that Moore playing means either the team is wracked with injuries again or that young players are not earning their keep. They should be good enough to beat out Moore for minutes.

Moore is more than capable of filling what minutes or role the Magic will ask of him this season. That is why he was a strong signing for the team to fill out the back of their bench. But the Magic still do not want to see too much of him on the court this season.