Magic select Michigan State's Jase Richardson with No. 25 pick in NBA draft

Jason Beede, Orlando Sentinel on Jun 25, 2025

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ORLANDO, Fla. — Once reliant upon the NBA draft to reconstruct their roster, the Magic have entered the “win-now” phase of building a competitive squad and they’ve secured their core pieces in Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs and the recently-acquired Desmond Bane.

Orlando, however, still had the opportunity to find roster help Wednesday night during the first round, even if the franchise was making its pick later in the evening than in years past.

The Magic and president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman believe they found that help with the No. 25 pick, selecting Jase Richardson from Michigan State.

The 6-foot-1 guard averaged 12.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists during 36 games but saw his scoring jump to 16.1 points when he was inserted into the starting lineup for the last 15 contests to help Michigan State reach the Elite Eight.

By landing Richardson, Orlando adds an efficient scorer who shot 41.2% from 3-point range in one year with the Spartans. Long-range shooting is an area of need for the Magic, who shot a league-low 31.8% from distance last season.

His father Jason Richardson spent more than a decade in the NBA, including part of two seasons with the Magic (2010-12).

The Magic originally had two first-round picks entering the offseason before they sent the No. 16 pick to the Grizzlies — alongside Cole Anthony, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and multiple future first-round picks — as part of the Bane trade.

Orlando still owns two picks in Thursday’s second round (No. 46 and No. 57) and have key roster decisions to make this weekend.

The club faces a Sunday deadline about Moe Wagner’s $11 million club option and a Monday deadline about Caleb Houstan’s $2.2 million option.

If Orlando declines the options, they’d become unrestricted free agents with the opportunity to re-sign with the team on new deals. Beyond declining or picking up the club options, the Magic could also push the guarantee dates later, if mutually agreed upon.

For now, the Magic know they’ve added Richardson to their roster with more work to do this offseason.