The Orlando Magic have had to employ some odd lineups as they face injuries at one position. They have no time to adjust, they must keep playing and win.
Orlando Magic coach Frank Vogel surprised many when he decided to start Jeff Green at shooting guard, having to deal with a rash of injuries to the guard spot. Facing a relatively big backcourt featuring Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler, Jeff Green figured to match up better than going with C.J. Watson or even Mario Hezonja.
It was not a guaranteed long-term solution for the Magic. It is still unclear what direction the Magic will go as they play the Boston Celtics’ Isaiah Thomas, Jaylen Brown and Jae Crowder. Vogel may be able to get away with the big lineup all over again.
Admittedly this was an odd lineup. Green had not played any shooting guard before Tuesday’s game and the lineup actually worked in its small sample size — a +4.8 net rating but with a 92.7 offensive rating in 21 minutes Tuesday.
Evan Fournier (heel) did not practice with the team Thursday and D.J. Augustin (ankle) did some non-contact drills. Evan Fournier, though, did some work before practice Thursday. His return seems to be coming quickly and Vogel said Fournier will go right back into the lineup whenever he is ready to play again. Both players remain questionable and day to day. It is unclear when they will return to the lineup.
Both players remain questionable and day to day. It is unclear when they will return to the lineup.
That means the Magic will still have to cobble together a shooting guard rotation featuring a mix of Jeff Green, C.J. Watson, Mario Hezonja and maybe even Anthony Brown. Figuring out what works will be a game-to-game situation.
“It’s case by case,” Vogel said. “And a lot of it is predicated on matchups and who is playing well and what combinations are playing well together. We re-evaluate it after each game.”
The cliche line is when someone gets injured, the next man has to step up. Whenever there are injuries, the lineups have to adjust and players have to get used to lineups quickly. There is no time to get comfortable.
Especially now considering the situation the Magic are in having to fight to stay in the Playoff race. This is not the time to be throwing out odd and unusual lineups. The team already took a long time to get used to playing with each other with normal lineups.
That is what the team has to do by necessity now. And there are no excuses. The Magic have to make it work.
“Right now is not the time to find those kinds of excuses,” Serge Ibaka said. “Just go out there and play. We have injuries right now, the lineup has to change. We don’t have the time to try to figure it out. You just go play do your job. It’s the coach’s job to know we have injuries and what lineups to make.”
Serge Ibaka said his focus is to worry less about the lineups and who he might be unfamiliar playing with and more to focus on his work.
Whatever group the Magic throw out there, everyone has to play their role and do their individual job. There may be hiccups with knowing where player placement is or figuring out how to break down a more unfamiliar matchup. But assumedly, the team has prepared itself for these possibilities through practice and scouting reports.
There is no time to get comfortable. The team just has to figure it out. The schedule waits for no one and is unforgiving to those who get frustrated by injuries.
Orlando has had to pull together its players and just find a way with all the injuries the team has faced. Elfrid Payton has seen his minutes increase. Watson has had to play more. The team had to bring in Anthony Brown to fill up practice minutes at least. And, yes, Green started at shooting guard Tuesday.
Of course, lineups fans see on the court is all the data we have. The coaching staff likely tinkers with lineups in practice to see what works before taking it to the game. Not everything is completely improvisational.
“I think we are at the point of the season where anything shouldn’t be new to us,” Nikola Vucevic said. “We know all the guys here. We do different lineups in practice and play with different guys. I think right now we know each other so that shouldn’t be an issue. Obviously, when you have guys going down and you are not winning, it’s tough. We have to deal with it. A lot of teams do it and we have to find a way.”
The Magic have had to overcome injuries. But every team has to. And that disrupts routine and rotations. But every team has to adjust. This is a normal part of the NBA season.
Injuries only seem to have hit Orlando hard and at a bad point in the season. There is a bit of an urgency to play better. Thus maybe the confusion over an odd lineup like the one the Magic ran out Tuesday.
Next: Orlando Magic not counting themselves out
No matter who the five are on the court, the Magic have no time to get comfortable. They just have to play and find a way to win.