Orlando Magic waive Bol Bol from roster
The Orlando Magic have waived big man Bol Bol, the team announced Tuesday in a press release. Teams will now have 48 hours to claim him before he becomes an unrestricted free agent.
Bol was set to make a base salary of $2.2 million with Orlando in 2023-24, according to Spotrac. However, that number was not guaranteed.
Bol had the best season of his career with the Magic, appearing in 70 games with 33 starts after playing in only 56 contests the previous three years combined. He averaged 9.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks across 21.5 minutes per game and shot 54.6%. Bol started in all 30 of the games he played in during November and December to average 12.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in that two-month span.
The son of former NBA All-Defensive player Manute Bol, Bol Bol was selected in the second round of the 2019 NBA Draft by the Miami Heat. He was then traded to the Denver Nuggets and spent the next three seasons with the franchise.
Bol was one of the top players in the country coming out of high school, ranking No. 4 overall in the 2018 class according to the On3 Industry Rating, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He committed to play for Oregon, but ultimately appeared in only nines game after a stress fracture in his foot ended his season. He averaged 21.0 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in college before entering the NBA Draft.
Orlando is coming off of a 34-48 record this past season and had the No. 6 and No. 11 picks in the 2023 NBA Draft. The Magic used those picks to take a pair of guard in Arkansas star Anthony Black and Michigan standout Jett Howard.
Center Mo Wagner recently re-signed with the Magic on a two-year deal worth $16 million. Orlando also brings back center Wendell Carter, who averaged 15.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game this past season. With those two players already, the team decided there wasn’t enough room to keep Bol on the roster.
Still, Bol stands 7-foot-2 and brings a shot blocking presence with him due to that frame, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see another team take a chance on him. Coming off of a career-best season, even if it did come on a Magic team that was far from contending, he should garner some interest.