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"I would like to keep Trevor on. I would also like to keep DeShawn on," Smith said. "But you've got to ask yourself at what dollar amount." The Magic tendered qualifying offers last week to Ariza and Mario Kasun, giving the Magic the right of first refusal if either player receives another offer. Ariza averaged 4.7 points and 3.9 rebounds in 21 games after coming over from New York, and Smith said that "unless somebody hits me with a ridiculous offer," the Magic will re-sign Ariza. The outlook is not as promising for Kasun, the 7-footer from Croatia whose two years with the Magic have been a disappointment. He played in only 28 games last season and none after March 4. Stevenson was one of only 12 players in the league to start all 82 games last season. Losing him would be a blow, but Smith isn't panicking. "DeShawn is still a part of what we do here," he said. "I don't see that, at this point, being a big issue." The free-agent moratorium ends July 12. J.J. Redick and Adam Morrison might be replacing Dwight Howard and Emeka Okafor as the storyline from now on when the Magic face the Charlotte Bobcats. The top two players in college basketball last season, who also happen to be close friends, are expected to take part next week in the Pepsi Pro Summer League at the RDV Sportsplex in Maitland. The Bobcats, who took Morrison with the third overall pick Wednesday night, and the Magic are among the six teams in the event -- which, due to space limitations, is not open to the public. "I think we both ended up in a place that we wanted to be," said Redick, who got a chance to congratulate Morrison amid the flurry of activity surrounding the draft. In addition to Redick and second-round pick James Augustine, the Magic will invite Travis Diener and Marcin Gortat. Both players were drafted in the second round a year ago, but while Diener made the Magic's roster, Gortat stayed in Europe. The list of undrafted players who will comprise the rest of the roster has not been announced. But it definitely won't include Darius Washington, the Memphis guard and Orlando native who left college after his sophomore year. The Houston Rockets are expected to take a look at Washington. · Redick and Augustine have met before, when Duke defeated Illinois in the 2004 NCAA Tournament after both schools had reached the Sweet 16. Illinois didn't lose again until the last game of the regular season the following year and got to the national championship game before losing to North Carolina. Augustine, who holds the all-time school career records for rebounds and field-goal percentage, also got to know Redick in 2003 when both of them were invited to the Olympic trials in Colorado Springs. |
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