The Orlando Magic traveled to Detroit on Friday in search of its first victory, the results were not encouraging.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
| Magic | 22 | 9 | 20 | 31 | 82 |
| Pistons | 24 | 30 | 32 | 22 | 108 |
What will Frank Vogel have to say about this one? Nothing but stern words and a promise to get back to work apparently.
Vogel said nobody on the Orlando Magic played good enough defense as the team gave up a 30-9 second quarter and trailed by as much as 35 points in a 108-82 loss to the Detroit Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills on Friday.
Serge Ibaka and Bismack Biyombo‘s presence on the defensive end did not live up to its potential in their first game together. The defense looked a step slow on the majority of the game.
It got so bad Vogel was forced to call his second timeout of the game halfway through the second quarter. The Magic only scored four points with four minutes left on the clock before halftime. They finished the quarter with nine, falling too far behind and unable to dig out.
It is truly hard to tell if this Magic team’s struggles are because of the lack of chemistry that the players know exist or a lack of confidence. Or, quite frankly, a lack of talent.
At some point players are going to stop making excuses about the chemistry issues regardless if they exist or not. The expectation has been set, playoffs-or-bust. Right now the Magic do not look remotely like that kind of a team.
The Magic were getting good looks at the basket, but the shots just would not fall. The Pistons get some credit for that. Although some of the shots that were missed were good looks at the basket.
For example the Magic started off the second quarter only down two points and could not buy a bucket for more than six minutes. Few teams can survive those stretches.
If the team does have a pathetic offensive stretch like that the least the team could do is defend the basket and the perimeter with passion and aggression.
Instead the Pistons were the aggressor all night long, scoring 60 points in the paint. That is more than 130 points in the paint allowed in two games for the Magic.
The Magic are not built to make a comeback on a team. Their offensive deficiencies seem to be more glaring when the defense does not come to play. This is the second game in a row this team has been disappointed with its effort on the defensive side of the ball.
This Magic team has a long way to go if it plans on making the playoffs. It is hard to point out any improvements.
Tomorrow night the Magic play the champs that swept the Detroit Pistons last year.