Orlando Magic must learn lessons from the past to build a modern team

While most of the NBA has moved in one direction stylistically the past few years, the Orlando Magic have moved the other and must catch up.

The Orlando Magic missed the playoffs for the fifth straight season in 2017. And they were not even close.

In a year in which the organization went all-in on making the playoffs, the team went 29-53 and ended up 12 games out of the final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The team fired both general manager Rob Hennigan and assistant general manager Scott Perry the day after the season ended. Now the team has a long way back to achieving the goals they set out.

A big mistake the past regime made when constructing the team was they felt it was a good idea to “zig when others zagged.”

When the league was valuing shooting more than ever, the Magic decided to invest in athletic defenders at the perimeter. When the league was going small and playing fewer big men, the Magic decided to invest in big men, giving three centers significant minutes last season.

None of those decisions worked out, and the Magic severely struggled in the biggest factors that lead to team success. Not only that, but the players did not fit well together on the court, and the whole was even less than the sum of the parts.

There is a reason the progressive and successful teams play a similar style. And that is because it is what works best in the NBA’s current landscape. Teams have found out how valuable certain shots are, and how to expose weaknesses such as lack of speed and versatility.

The most important thing the Magic can do this offseason is begin to catch up with the direction the league has been moving in, and their president of basketball operations hire is crucial for this.

Hit on that decision, and the Magic could see them returning to success soon. Continue to be left behind the modern NBA, and the Magic will see many more years like 2016-2017.