The Orlando Magic have called teams to ask about their interest in trading for starting small forward Hedo Turkoglu prior to Thursday's NBA trade deadline, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com, but have found little interest in the 32-year-old. "It's one thing to try to foist Turkoglu on a team that's trading for [Dwight] Howard," Stein says, "and quite another to try to move Turkoglu, or any other vet in Howard's supporting cast, when Dwight himself isn't part of the deal."
Turkoglu, whom the Magic re-acquired from the Phoenix Suns in December 2010, is averaging 11.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 4.7 assists for Orlando during the 2011/12 season. The Magic are hoping to add another star to complement Howard, and Stein says Turkoglu's name "is the first" Orlando's offered to opposing teams in trade talks "over the past week or so."
One "front-office source" Stein consulted for his story says the Magic would need to include "at least two [future] first-round picks" to entice another team to take the two years and $18 million remaining on Turkoglu's contract.
Since starting the 2011/12 season strong, Turkoglu's productivity has dipped sharply, as the 12-year veteran is shooting just 37.1 percent in his last 20 games.
