The Orlando Magic are giving strong consideration to a big change in their front office, according to league sources.
Sources told ESPN that Magic general manager Rob Hennigan's job is under threat at season's end in the wake of a fifth straight non-playoff season since he was hired.
The Magic expected to contend for a playoff berth this season after hiring former Indiana Pacers coach Frank Vogel to replace Scott Skiles and trading for Serge Ibaka on draft day last June.
But Hennigan, the league's youngest GM at age 34, wound up trading Ibaka to the Toronto Raptors just eight months after surrendering Victor Oladipo, No. 11 overall pick Domantas Sabonis and another future first-round pick to acquire him from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The about-face on Ibaka was widely seen not only as a concession that the Magic's roster was overloaded with big men but also that they had little shot of re-signing Ibaka in free agency this summer.
The failed Ibaka gambit followed an unsuccessful trade in February 2016 in which Orlando gave up promising swingman Tobias Harris in a deal with Detroit for what turned out to be short-term stays for both Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova.
ESPN reported Saturday that there has been persistent chatter in league front-office circles in recent weeks that Orlando and former Magic coach Doc Rivers will explore a reunion when Rivers' time with the Los Angeles Clippers comes to an end.
But Rivers moved to dismiss the notion that he could emerge as a possible successor to Hennigan, telling local reporters before Saturday's home win over the Cleveland Cavaliers: "I can tell you I had a past with the Magic. I have no future [in Orlando]. My future's here."
Rivers is in the third year of a five-year pact worth in excess of $50 million to serve as Clippers coach and president of basketball operations.
Hennigan is under contract in Orlando through the 2017-18 season but, according to league sources, finds himself under as much pressure as any executive in the league at present.
Detroit Pistons executive Pat Garrity, who played for the Magic, and Golden State Warriors assistant general manager Travis Schlenk, who broke into the NBA with the Magic, have already surfaced as potential candidates for the job should Orlando make a change, as many league insiders expect.
Magic CEO Alex Martins has repeatedly deferred comment about Hennigan's job status until season's end, saying that the GM will be evaluated then as part of the team's annual review.
Hennigan addressed criticism of his performance last month in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel.
"First and foremost, the criticism is warranted," Hennigan told the Sentinel. "I don't know if it's welcome because no one likes to get criticized, but the job we have and the job we're trying to do is certainly subject to that. Our fans, quite frankly, deserve to be upset and deserve to be frustrated. ... I think the proverbial hot seat comes with the territory."
Hennigan was hired at age 30 by Orlando in July 2012 after front-office stints with both San Antonio and Oklahoma City. He traded a disgruntled Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers within his first month on the job but hasn't been able to steer the Magic to a position higher than last season's 11th in the East.
Skiles coached Orlando to a 35-47 mark last season but abruptly resigned in May 2016, announcing that "I am not the right head coach for this team."
The Magic are 25-45 under Vogel but have looked more cohesive since Ibaka's departure, thanks in part to Aaron Gordon moving to his more natural position at power forward.