Bitadze had his best game of the season Sunday night as the Orlando Magic beat the Phoenix Suns, 115-110. He had a season-high 21 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, though his monster rebounding performance is in line with what he’s done so far this season, with eight double-digit rebounding games.
The 25-year-old has been a lifesaver for the Magic, who have lost three key front court players this season. Paolo Banchero, a power forward and sometime small ball center, suffered a torn oblique in October, and forward Franz Wagner is out for at least four weeks with the same injury. Starting center Wendell Carter, Jr. missed 13 games with plantar fasciitis, though he returned two weeks ago.
But even without Banchero, and mostly without Carter, the Magic managed to go 14-4 in Bitadze’s starts. The Magic are 11.5 points better when Bitadze is on the court, thanks to his excellent offensive rebounding (2.8 per game) and his 71% shooting on two-pointers.
Indiana drafted Bitadze with the No. 18 pick in the 2019 draft, but he never really got regular playing time with the Pacers, who had Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis ahead of him for his first three seasons. At the trade deadline in 2023, Indiana thought so little of Bitadze, an impending free agent, that when they needed an extra roster spot after helping facilitate Kevin Durant’s trade to the Phoenix Suns, they simply released Bitadze.
Given a second chance, Bitadze immediately emerged as an impact defender for Orlando. His offensive rating was 110 points per 100 possessions in 2022-23, dropped to 107 last season and is a stingy 103 this year. The advanced stats love Bitadze’s defense as well, with a defensive box score plus/minus of 2.8 last season and 2.7 so far this year — meaning he’s nearly three points better than an average defender, per 100 possessions.
This summer, Bitadze resigned for three years and $25M, which is looking like a serious bargain, especially since the salary numbers decline every season.
Orlando will need Bitadze even more with Wagner and Banchero out, but they did prove they can beat a good team like the Suns without their stars. It’s still going to be a struggle for the Magic to make baskets, but at least with Bitadze, they’ve got a player uniquely suited to rebound and put back the inevitable missed shots.
The Magic have hit on solid players in the draft with Wagner, Banchero and Jalen Suggs. But they’re staying the playoff hunt thanks to the potential they recognized in another team’s apparent draft bust.
