Defensive pressure too much for Orlando Magic in loss to Washington Wizards

The Orlando Magic played a tight game with the Washington Wizards, but the Wizards’ strong defensive pressure towards the end was too much to handle.

Coming off a win against the Utah Jazz on Friday night, the Orlando Magic had a lot going against them.

They were tired, injured, and facing a tough Washington Wizards team looking to get back on track while on a three-game losing streak and having three days to stew and practice before facing the magic.

The Magic played well in the first half, but they ultimately squandered the lead and fell in Washington 108-99.

There were a few issues with the team, but the biggest one was not being able to handle Washington’s on-ball pressure.

The Wizards were the fifth-ranked defense last season, according to defensive rating, and a lot of that is due to strong on-ball defense from their athletic guards and wing players.

Their defense had struggled so far coming into this game (ranked 24th in defensive rating), and they knew in order to start winning games, they would have to get the defense going. Coach Randy Wittman challenged them to do just that.

They did just that against the Magic, forcing 12 turnovers and a lot of bad shots.

Washington is 12th in the league in opponent turnover rate, and that is due to having long and athletic perimeter defenders who do a good job of pressuring ball handlers at the perimeter and forcing them out of their comfort zone.

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The pressure threw off the Magic, and they struggled to run their offense. Orlando instead settled for rushed isolation plays and deep midrange jumpers.

The defense forced the Magic into bad shots, as they shot 43.7 percent from the field, 22.2 percent from three, and scored 0.956 points per possession, a number worse than the average of 28 of the teams.

They really looked flustered at times, struggling event to complete passes cleanly.

If the Magic are going to compete for a playoff spot, they will have to learn how to keep their offense in rhythm when facing a lot of on-ball pressure.

Off-ball movement and basket cuts worked in the first half, and the team should look to run off screens and cuts like the coaching staff planned. It has not quite become the default for this team yet. It comes only in flashes as Orlando still looks to become the team Scott Skiles envisioned.

They will also have to look to take care of the ball when penetrating, and find guys for open jumpers. Players will also have to look to find holes in the defense while moving off the ball in order to get into positions for open jumpers.

The offense has looked improved at times this season, but it needs to be more consistent when facing adversity.

So far, that has been a big weakness and has greatly effected late-game execution. It did not help as the Magic fell Saturday.