Jonathon Simmons has
Opportunity with Magic too much to pass up
never lived outside his home state of Texas, but a huge opportunity with the Magic was worth moving to Orlando.
Jonathon Simmons has never lived outside his home state of Texas before. Oh sure, he’s traveled all over the country (and to Toronto) to play in NBA games, but his decision to join the Orlando Magic in free agency represents a dramatic change for him.
“I’ll be farther away from family and friends, but it’s a sacrifice,” Simmons said Tuesday. “Everybody understands that in my circle. So I’m looking forward to it.”
He’s making the move from the San Antonio Spurs to the Magic for the opportunity. The Magic will pay him an average salary of $6 million per year over the next three seasons and also will give him a chance to broaden his game.
In San Antonio, the 6-foot-6 swingman was a third wheel of sorts behind perennial All-Star Kawhi Leonard and also Danny Green.
In Orlando, he’ll join a team that needs a boost.
“A lot of things about
“I think a lot of guys in the NBA are just happy being in the NBA, and I’m not one of those guys.” Magic swingman Jonathon Simmons
Jonathon Simmons impress us,” said Jeff Weltman, the Magic’s president of basketball operations.
“I think that the first element when you look at a player and try to add someone to an organization is you want fighters. You want guys who are going to compete to win and make those around them better. And we see a lot of that in Jonathon.”
Simmons demonstrated his fighting spirit during his long, up-and-down road to the NBA. Undrafted out of the University of Houston in 2012, he played for a semipro club before he attended a group tryout for the Spurs’ minor-league affiliate. He latched on with that team, and after two years, the Spurs signed him.
He earned a reputation as a tenacious defender.
“I think a lot of guys in the NBA are just happy being in the NBA, and I’m not one of those guys,” Simmons said. “I want to be able to compete at a high level against elite guys.”
The Magic need more competitors on the defensive end. The team finished last season ranked 24th in points allowed per possession.
Simmons, who will turn 28 in September, began July as a restricted free agent, which gave the Spurs the right to match any offer sheet he might have received from another team. Last week, however, the Spurs withdrew their qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent.
“It’s a business, and I had to look out for myself,” Simmons said.
The Magic signed him to a relatively team-friendly contract — a contract that is guaranteed for only $1 million in its final season.
Signing Simmons will be remembered as a bargain if he can upgrade the Magic’s defense and if he can improve his 3-point shooting, which dipped from 38.3 percent as a rookie to 29.4 percent last season.
But Weltman stressed Tuesday that Simmons brings more elements to his game than only defense.
“Jonathon’s such a good defender, he’s such an aggressive player that that kind of captures your attention,” Weltman said. “But Jonathon gets to the rim. He’s a capable passer, and I think his shooting has shown improvement. So at this stage of his career, he’s still a young guy. If he can kind of continue to stairstep progress with his perimeter abilities, there’s a whole other level in store for him.”
In theory, he should have a bigger role with the Magic than he had with the Spurs.
That chance helped prompt him to make the move.
“I think it’s an opportunity to come in and make a impact on a team and try to see if we can turn things around,” Simmons said. jrobbins@ orlandosentinel.com Read his blog at OrlandoSentinel.com/ magicblog and follow him on Twitter at @JoshuaBRobbins