ORLANDO, Fla. — When the Orlando Magic return from the All-Star break to play the Detroit Pistons on Thursday, they could see a former teammate on the other side of the court.
Magic President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman announced on Tuesday that the team has waived guard R.J. Hampton.
After that announcement, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted that Hampton plans to sign with the Pistons.
After clearing waivers, guard R.J. Hampton plans to sign with the Detroit Pistons, sources tell ESPN. Hampton, the 24th overall pick in 2020, averaged 5.7 points in 13.9 minutes for the Magic this season.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 21, 2023
The Magic also converted the two-way contract of forward Admiral Schofield, who had been moving between Orlando and the Lakeland Magic, to a standard NBA contract, Weltman said. Schofield, 6 feet 5 and 240 pounds, has played in 27 games for Orlando this season.
The team did not disclose financial terms of the deals.
Hampton was in the final year of his rookie contract. He had played in only seven Orlando games since the start of December and had asked multiple times to go play for the Lakeland Magic to see more playing time. The waiver by the Magic gave Hampton the opportunity to sign with another NBA team that could give him more playing time.
Hampton, 6 feet 6 and 190 pounds, played in 26 games this season with Orlando, averaging 5.7 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 13.9 minutes per game. He shot .838 (31-for-37) from the free-throw line. He scored in double figures eight times, including a season-high 15 points on Oct. 30 in Dallas and on Nov. 3 against Golden State. In all, Hampton played in 116 career games, including 15 starts, with the Magic since being acquired in the trade that sent Aaron Gordon to the Denver Nuggets on March 25, 2021.
Just before the All-Star break, the Magic signed free-agent center Goga Bitadze. Bitadze, 6 feet 11, 230 pounds, played in 21 games this season with the Indiana Pacers, averaging 3.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 9.6 minutes per game, while shooting .519 (27-for-52) from the floor. He led (or tied) the Pacers in rebounding once.
The Magic needed another center after trading Mo Bamba to the Los Angeles Lakers at the trade deadline for guard Patrick Beverley, who was waived and signed with the Chicago Bulls.
Orlando is trying to fight for an NBA play-in spot in their last 23 games of the season. They will enter Thursday's game 24-35, four games behind the Toronto Raptors, who currently hold the 10th and final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference.
Detroit is behind Orlando in the Eastern Conference standings at 15-44, the worst record in the East and the third-worst record in the NBA. But the Pistons have already won both games they have played against the Magic this season, 113-109 on opening night in Detroit and 121-101 on Dec. 28.