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Magic make two-way contract moves, call up Osceola mainstay
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- Magic make two-way contract moves, call up Osceola mainstay
The Magic waived two-way center Orlando Robinson and signed Osceola forward Alex Morales to a two-way contract, the team announced Tuesday.
Robinson brought NBA experience with him when he signed with the franchise over the summer but ended up only appearing in four games for the Magic , averaging 1.8 points and a rebound during 6.2 minutes per night.
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Morales has become a familiar face for the organization's G League affiliate, spending the first four years of his pro career with the Osceola Magic while often taking part in Orlando 's training camp before the start of the season.
He's appeared in 112 G League games all with Osceola. This season, the 6-foot-6 forward has averaged 19.2 points, 8 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.2 steals during 35.6 minutes night across 18 regular season games for Osceola coach Dylan Murphy .
Two-way contracts allow teams to carry three extra players in addition to the 15 on their regular-season roster. Those players will go between the NBA and G League, but they're limited to 50 NBA games.
The two-way contract Morales signed with the Magic includes a season year for next season that is non-guaranteed, a league source told the Orlando Sentinel . He'll wear No. 30 with the Magic.
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Robinson made a last-minute start against the Celtics on Nov. 23 but only saw 13 minutes of action that night. Before signing with the Magic, the 6-foot-10 center had appeared in 111 career NBA regular season games with Miami , Sacramento and Toronto across the first three seasons of his pro career.
Where Robinson has NBA experience, Morales lacks it. But he's proven himself with Osceola at the G League level, which typically plays at a faster-pace than the NBA.
This season, Morales has shot 52.8% from the floor, 41.3% from 3-point range and 83.3% at the free throw-line for Osceola.
When the Magic traveled to Puerto Rico for a preseason game against the Heat, Morales notched nine points, six rebounds, three assists and a steal in 18 minutes during an Oct. 4 exhibition. He also saw 12 minutes of action during Orlando's second preseason game against the Heat, totaling six points, two rebounds, an assist and a steal on Oct. 12.
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Morales has played multiple games for the Puerto Rico Men's National Team during various tournaments, including as recently as early December in the first round of the FIBA World Cup Americas Qualifiers.
Across three seasons at Wagner College from 2019-22, he averaged 15.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.51 steals during 33.1 minutes per night in 74 career games. He was named the Northeast Conference (NEC) Player of the Year in both 2020-21 and '21-22, and the NEC Defensive Player of the Year in '21-22.
While the Magic return from the NBA All-Star break Thursday at Sacramento, Morales isn't traveling yet with Orlando, the Sentinel learned.
Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com
