Orlando Magic finally have the space to succeed on offense

The Orlando Magic offense has been frustrating all season with players seemingly stuck. By downsizing and running, they have the space to succeed.

The Orlando Magic were reeling for the first time all game it seemed. The Miami Heat had closed their gap to six points after Goran Dragic drew a foul on a 3-pointer and made two of the three free throws.

Orlando needed a play to ice the game and put an end to the threat. These are the winning plays the team has to make and learn how to make. The moments they have to learn to thrive in.

These are the moments that will reinforce the team’s style of play and identity. The Magic are trying to become something. Wins are the only way to get complete buy in.

Belief requires some results.

So when Elfrid Payton came around the screen from Aaron Gordon, he had exactly what he needed most. Space.

The Heat’s defense sagged off Elfrid Payton as teams tend to do with his poor shooting. But they did not quite collapse around him. Aaron Gordon was rolling to the basket and the defense did not know how to react or where to commit.

Commit to Gordon, and Payton has a free path to the basket and an easy basket. Commit to Payton, and the lob is coming to Gordon. And…

Too late. In that moment of indecision, Payton had made his. He took the space and lobbed it to Gordon for a two-handed jam.

The Magic’s newfound devotion to pace and space have unlocked more plays like these with Payton headed down hill and cuts going toward the basket. It has created more plays where the team’s athleticism and versatility are on full display.

Orlando Magic

"“I think it helps everybody give more space,” Nikola Vucevic told Orlando Magic Daily after the game. “We can run more and play at a faster pace. I think it fits more the type of players we have on this team.”"

The play was followed by a stop and a 3-point miss by Terrence Ross. The ball reversal created a gap for Nikola Vucevic to get position and grab the offensive rebound.

The Magic’s devotion to spacing the floor and getting out in transition had paid a final dividend in the victory.

Vucevic’s putback gave the Magic a 10-point lead. And then the Magic put the exclamation point on the game by rotating the ball around to Evan Fournier for a game-clinching 3-point answer in an 110-99 win at Amway Center on Friday.

What is clear now for an offense that has struggled to get itself going all year is there is an opportunity to create. Shooting and speed have created space for the team’s best players to operate. And more importantly to attack.

"“I think [this style of play] fits me a lot,” Payton told reporters after Friday’s win. “It opens up the floor. When you get into the paint with a lot more space, you’re able to get the ball to shooters and attack the rim.”"

Payton was unleashed most of all, setting the tone with his ability to push the pace and attack the basket in transition. He had his second near-triple-double since the All-Star Break, scoring 12 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists.

These are the kind of stat lines the Magic have always wanted to see from their point guard. But they can only happen when he has the space and the ability to get down the court quickly.

Orlando’s shift to a smaller lineup is not a huge philosophical shift for the team. The Magic has used smaller lineups before. The shift is the speed at which Orlando plays now. And, now, the ability to play at that pace more often.

Adding a perimeter shooter in Terrence Ross and moving Aaron Gordon back to power forward has re-emphasized the Magic’s speed and athleticism. It is not that playing with Serge Ibaka caused the Magic to slow down too much. As a post player, he naturally operates at a slower pace. And with two bigs clogging the paint, there were fewer driving lanes to attack.

It is the Magic now have the space and the ability to move faster.

As coach Frank Vogel has said since the trade deadline, going smaller has naturally caused the Magic to become more active in passing lanes. Smaller teams have to be scrappier defensively.

And that feeds the team’s transition attack.

With the Magic’s defense in full gear, they were able to get Payton out in transition. And this is where he is most deadly.

Orlando scored 18 of the team’s 20 fast-break points in the first half. The team set its tone playing this way. And an increase in fastbreak points — the Magic average 13.7 fast-break points per game, but 20.5 per game since the All-Star Break — has come because the team has created more space with more shooters and a team more willing to run and attack.

"“We’re trying to establish this style of play,” Vogel told Orlando Magic Daily after Friday’s game. “We’re going to commit to the running game and be a swarming type of defense that has speed at all positions.“We’re built better now with our small ball attack to play against a team like this which is playing a style of play 75 percent of the league is playing now. I was proud of to me a third straight solid defensive performance, something we’re trying to establish ourselves with a defensive identity this year. It has been a struggle. Last three games, it has looked really good.”"

Everyone seems to notice this truth about the Magic now. There is more space to operate and attack. It has helped the team improve its offensive efficiency and form the basis for something consistent.

Payton said the style fits everyone better. It gives shooters like Fournier and Ross more room to operate by getting them out on the run. And they give each other room with their shooting abilities.

Gordon too works better against power forwards. His speed and activity around the basket have increased.

No player may benefit more from this style than Payton.

Payton, as everyone knows, struggles to shoot the ball. He is at his best when he can get downhill and drive to the basket. When he can use his speed and the space opponents give him because of his poor shooting against them.

Throughout Friday’s game, Payton would get the rebound himself and drive down the floor quickly. He would get to the basket — seven of his eight field goal attempts came right at the rim — and create for others as much as himself. He had the Heat defense at his whim.

And plenty of weapons — whether it was Fournier or Ross on the wings, Gordon flaring to the corner or cutting to the basket for a lob or Vucevic trailing.

The Magic have a lot of weapons. They just have to get out and use them.

The team’s new fast-breaking style has unlocked a bit of the offense that was locked away some before. The team still has a lot of work to do. But Friday, the Magic showed the commitment they need to use the weapons they have.

"“We had a great commitment to the running game early,” Vogel said. “I think that set the tone for the game. It’s just easier to play ahead than to play from behind. For us to come out with the running game and the commitment in the first quarter. We built the lead up and had them playing from behind the whole night.”"

Next: Grades: Orlando Magic 110, Miami Heat 99

Orlando has created the space and the opportunity to score since the All-Star Break. It is refreshing to see.