In the first major deal of the NBA trade deadline, it is being reported that the Orlando Magic have traded forward Tobias Harris to the Detroit Pistons for guard Brandon Jennings and forward Ersan Ilyasova.
Magic have traded Tobias Harris to Pistons for Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova, per ESPN.
— Sam Amico (@AmicoHoops) February 16, 2016
Harris, 23, was once seen as the face of the Magic franchise. He averaged 17.1 points and 6.3 rebounds last season, a performance that earned the former first-round pick a four-year, $64 million contract last July.
However, Harris has struggled to an extent for the under-performing Magic this year. He’s averaging just 13.7 points while shooting at the same 46 percent clip he finished last year with.
The high-upside youngster will automatically fill in as Detroit’s starting small forward, giving the team a solid trio with Reggie Jackson and Andre Drummond.
Heading to Orlando in the deal is former lottery pick Brandon Jennings, who missed the first 31 games of the season with an Achilles injury.
This move is rather interesting considering Orlando had just recently inserted Victor Oladipo into the lineup as the team’s starting point guard. Oladipo himself has been the subject of trade rumors.
Pretty much as a salary cap filler, Orlando also picked up a player in Ersan Ilyasova that can help the team from the wing. The 10-year vet is averaging 11.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game while shooting 36 percent from three-point range this season. He figures to come off the bench at power forward, but could also be called on to start.
Detroit enters this week’s action as the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 27-27 record. Meanwhile, recent struggles have Orlando six games under .500 and pretty much completely out of the playoff race.