Story by
Two-way players Castleton, Morales stay ready for chance with Magic
- Story by
- Two-way players Castleton, Morales stay ready for chance with Magic
While the preseason is an opportunity for teams to ramp up for the regular season, it's also a chance for players further down the bench to see the floor.
For the Magic , that includes two-way players Colin Castleton and Alex Morales .
Advertisement
As two-way players, Castleton and Morales will go between the NBA and the G League , but they're limited to being active for just 50 NBA games and can't play in the playoffs. In addition to spending time with Orlando , they'll also play for Osceola , the franchise's G League affiliate.
And this year, they'll have to get used to playing for two new head coaches: Sean Sweeney with Orlando and Ronnie Burrell with Osceola.
"It's been very easy," Morales said recently about getting to know both Sweeney and Burrell. "They're two great guys and relatable, so the conversations and all that stuff have been very smooth. Two straightforward guys who are going to tell you how it is and tell you what you're supposed to do. So, it's been very smooth for the most part."
Added Castleton: "Just being able to balance knowing both coaches, I've been able to talk with both coaches and just get to know them on a personal level."
Advertisement
For Morales, this season is his second on a two-way contract, which he didn't sign until mid-February with the Magic. Although he appeared in only four NBA games last season, Morales has become a mainstay for Osceola.
In total, he's appeared in 127 G League games with Osceola, averaging 10.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 steals during 28.1 minutes per night across four seasons.
Although he's Osceola's all-time rebounding leader with 780, Morales believes he has a spot in the NBA. He's hoping to prove that this season.
"I don't really have too many individual goals, but just to showcase that all of the intangibles and stuff that I contribute to Osceola and into the G League, I'm able to do the same thing at this level," the 6-foot-6 forward said.
Advertisement
Compared to Morales, Castleton has more NBA experience.
The 6-foot-11 center who attended Father Lopez in Daytona Beach and finished his college career at the University of Florida has appeared in 46 NBA games with the Lakers, Grizzlies, Raptors, Sixers and Magic.
He made 26 of those appearances on multiple 10-day contracts with Toronto, Memphis and Philadelphia during the 2024-25 campaign, but saw fewer chances this past season because of a broken left thumb.
His biggest goal this year is to stay healthy after he signed another two-way contract with Orlando and spent Las Vegas Summer League with the Magic.
Advertisement
"This season if I'm fully healthy when an opportunity arises, I'll be able to take advantage of that," Castleton said.
Both Morales and Castleton spent most of their offseason working in the AdventHealth Training Center. They were some of the earliest Magic players to have worked for Sweeney this summer before more of the team reported back to the facility.
As two-way players going between the G League and NBA, it's not a given they'll be able to play consistently for Sweeney, but so far they've made an impression on the first-time head coach.
"They've done a great job with their energy each and every day," Sweeney said about Morales and Castleton earlier this week. "Both those guys have a dirty work mentality where they're really trying to do the little things that help a team win, maybe some of those invisible plays that don't necessarily show up in the box score.
Advertisement
"We've seen them put a lot of time and effort into developing on the things that we've asked them to get better at," he added. "It's been great to have them at practice each day and they've each shown signs of improvement."
Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com
