Orlando Magic Grades: Cleveland Cavaliers 117, Orlando Magic 103
By Joe Buckley
The Orlando Magic fell to an unrelenting wave of shooting from the Cavaliers. The starters went missing, but some of the bench had inspiring performances.
38. Final. 117. 156. 103
The Cleveland Cavaliers were on championship form from the get go, and this is with them resting two starters from this season and waiting for two more from last season to return from injury.
While the Orlando Magic eventually put in some defensive effort and were able to scrap a lead at one point in the second quarter, they never truly looked like they were in the game. And the Cavaliers did not notice them much more than the boot notices the ant in the second half.
Shabazz Napier and Victor Oladipo were the ones to rouse the Magic in the first half eventually, pressuring the Cavaliers guards and getting results in the forms of turnovers and fast breaks. Taking their lead, other starters Evan Fournier and Tobias Harris had efficient, if uninspiring games.
Off the bench, Napier and oft-forgotten Andrew Nicholson provided some interest at least, with Nicholson scoring 15 in a half and showing off some decent range. Even Channing Frye chipped in with a perfect 3 for 3 in just six minutes.
While these performances individually are good news, the net result was not. The Magic often looked completely lost on defence and simply couldn’t break out on offense. Kevin Love‘s outlet passes alone were enough to tell the story: the Magic were chasing the ball the whole night, and never quite got there.
<p> </p><p>Shabazz Napier did not have a great game shooting wise, going 3 for 10 and missing all four of his 3-pointers, but the young guard brought the energy Lebron James famously coveted when persuading the Miami Heat to draft him.</p><p>His defensive pressure early on helped change the Magic’s mindset and remind them they were in an NBA game. He honestly looked like the veteran setting the example.</p><p>Besides just the energy, Napier provided the numbers too. He set a new career high in assists with nine, leading the team in the category too, on a night they sorely needed it. Solid free throw shooting brought his points up to 11, his second highest of the season. The fact he did all this without a turnover was a testament to his steady play against an intimidating defence.</p>. PG. Orlando Magic. SHABAZZ NAPIER. B+
ANDREW NICHOLSON. B+. <p>Andrew Nicholson is averaging about nine minutes per game so far this year. His appearance early on in this game had some tweeting their surprise. #NicholsonAlert was seen more than once. And it is a good thing too.</p><p>The St. Bonaventure alum made the most of his minutes, immediately going to work under the basket and stepping outside to show his range, hitting three of his five 3-point attempts.</p><p>Nicholson was the standout of the second quarter revival, scoring 15 first half points. Though he only added three in the second half, he also added eight boards and was one of the few bright sparks of the game, setting his season high by a clear 10 points.</p>. PF. Orlando Magic
SG. Orlando Magic. VICTOR OLADIPO. B-. <p>Along with Napier, Victor Oladipo set the defensive tone late in the first quarter. He also provided perhaps the top highlight of the game in a fast break alley-oop finish, absolutely crushing the dunk on a pass from <strong><a href=
C+. <p>Prior to the game, Evan Fournier was second in the league in minutes played, mainly due to his surprising jump on the offensive end. He is currently the team’s leading scorer, though this title did not earn him much on this night.</p><p>The Magic offense does a great job of setting Fournier up, and Fournier does a great job of using these screens to get a good shot. At the beginning of the game, this was exactly the case as Fournier continued his showcase of his talents. Unfortunately from there, his game was just kind of . . . average.</p><p>He played 15 minutes under his average of 38 and only took five shots. He hit all three of his threes and both his free throws and still ended with 13 points, but overall his performance just did not affect the game a lot. Four fouls did not help his minutes situation, and it would be reasonable to expect Fournier to bounce back, but the Magic could have used more.</p>. G/F. Orlando Magic. EVAN FOURNIER
A. <p>The Cavaliers came out looking like they could not miss if they tried. Five different players scored 3-pointers, three of them scoring four or more. The offense looked unstoppable, with <strong><a href=. 11-3. 1st East. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS