NBA

Orlando Magic Waived 22 Year Old RJ Hampton, Detroit Acted Quickly And Are Set To Sign The Former First-Round Pick

RJ Hampton pic

RJ Hampton did not take the traditional route that most high school players take to get to the NBA. He went and played overseas for one season before he was selected 24th overall in the 2020 NBA draft. In three seasons as a pro he’s played in 141 career games and was just not fitting in with the Magic this season. That is why he was recently waived by Orlando, but the Detroit Pistons acted fast and are set to sign Hampton. 

When he was originally traded to the Magic his game flourished, but he did not have a great season last year and that’s translated into the 2022-23 season as well. Hampton was playing a career-low (13.9) minutes per game and had fallen out of the rotation for Orlando.

The Pistons can’t get any worse and decided they’ll take a chance on the former first-round pick. Detroit are currently the worst team in the Eastern Conference and have a 15-44 record. NBA betting sites have the Pistons at (+150000) to win the Finals this season.

RJ Hampton is taking his talents to the city of Detroit

The last time Hampton played in a game was on 1/4 and has had seven DNP’s since that time. He simply fell out of the rotation at guard and it was time for both sides to move on. In 24 games played for the Magic this season he averaged (5.7) points, (1.5) rebounds, and (1.3) assists per game.

Hampton is not going to be a starter in Detroit, but he can hope to play a solid role off the bench. Detroit only has 23 games left on the season and would need more than a miracle at this point to make the playoffs. He can try to get himself acclimated in the final 23 games and hopefully find an expanded role with Detroit or another franchise.

It will be hard for Hampton to find playing time next year with the Pistons when Cade Cunningham is back.