Through all the ‘noise,’ Orlando Magic try to stay positive day-to-day
There are many rumors about Jacque Vaughn‘s status as coach of the Orlando Magic. He is putting the blinders on and focusing on his team’s daily grind.
It was reminiscent of Aaron Rodgers’ press conference before the Green Bay Packers turned things around and made a run to the NFC Championship Game (and except for that collapse, a Super Bowl berth).
Jacque Vaughn had a simple request for his team to turn things around and fight through the constant noise of rumors swirling around Vaughn. His team is mired in a losing streak of seven games in a row and 13 of 15 games and then even further back of 20 in 26 games.
To get through one game, there is only one thing the Magic can do right now.
“Relax. That’s it,” Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said when asked about the mindset his team needed entering Saturday’s game. “Go play basketball. Just compete and have fun and play basketball. No added pressure. I’m not giving any pressure. Just go out and play.”
The added cameras and the added attention from the swirling of rumors may have added some of that pressure. The Magic too have often looked like they were pressing trying to make more plays than they can. Vaughn commented after Thursday’s game that it sometimes looked like the Magic were trying to score 10-point plays to make up the deficit.
No one can do that. There are no 10-point plays.
One of the problems from this young team has been the inability to climb out of holes and climb out of their own mistakes. Of course, this team has shown too this year how quickly things can turn around when they gain confidence.
“I think overall, from day one, whether you are on a winning streak or a losing streak, you are trying to improve your team,” Jacque Vaughn said. “I think you try to keep it that simple. I don’t think there is any need to do anything different from that.
The positivity of a strong West Coast trip in December is a distant memory. The Playoffs seem even further away. Vaughn still believes one win can change things
Vaughn’s future seems more or less certain that he will not be the coach past the year. The question appears to be whether he finishes out the season.
On that front, Vaughn said Saturday that he had not talked with Magic general manager Rob Hennigan on Friday and that he was not even sure Hennigan was in town. Orlando will be heading out on the road for a Monday game against Oklahoma City (where Hennigan was before he joined the Magic) and Wednesday against San Antonio (where Vaughn was before he joined the Magic).
Vaughn is the team’s head coach for now. He will lead the team again Saturday night. He has the blinders on and is trying to do his job, reaching players.
He was brought in to be a teacher, to nurture young players and teach them the league.
His last lesson could be helping them learn how to stay focused while questions about the franchise’s future and the coaching staff swirl. Many players on the roster have never had to deal with that and perform.
“This is part of the process of growing up in this league,” Vaughn said. “It just doesn’t happen overnight. There are a lot of lessons that you learn along the way. How can you continue to fight through adversity.
“It’s easy to be jovial and enthusiastic in comfort and convenience. But what happens when you don’t have that? There is a lot of lessons to be learned every single night.”
Of course, this lesson would not be needed if the team were performing well under Vaughn. With all the news coming out and rumors swirling, it will be interesting to see how the team responds against Dallas on Saturday and whether anything will change for the Magic.
Next: Even as things have looked bleak, the Magic see a silver lining