The Orlando Magic enter the season with high aspirations. But there is plenty to accomplish, even if they fall short of their lofty Playoff goals.
When the Orlando Magic introduced Scott Skiles as their head coach, he did not beat around the bush on what his team’s goal would be.
There was no talk of continued improvement. No talk of development or process. The last three years of Magic basketball were played under different expectations. Skiles’ expectations would be clear. They have a number.
As he has repeated when asked about his expectations for the team, the Magic’s goals are to have a top-10 defense and to have a winning record. Not just simply make the Playoffs, but get to 41 wins and have a winning record.
It is a fantastic goal for the Magic. It is a clear expectation based on clear results on the floor. The time for nebulous goals of “improvement” are done. Orlando is clearly serious about winning as an organization and holding this group it has built accountable to those goals.
That would be an enormous step up, of course, as I noted earlier this week in the radio spot below. To go from 25 wins to 41 wins would be an incredible accomplishment for this team. That hugs of a bump up would mean players realize their full potential all of a sudden and complete buy in to what Scott Skiles preached. It would raise the expectation level so much higher than previously believed.
Frankly, it would make everyone wonder what the heck happened the last three years.
The team should absolutely have these goals. They should absolutely state them publicly to raise the antenna of players and let them know publicly what the expectation for them is.
That does not mean the season is a failure if the Magic miss the Playoffs or fail to reach 41 wins. It certainly could be viewed as a disappointment, but the long-term picture remains in focus.
Rob Hennigan assembled this team with the idea of seeing it grow and develop together. There are steps to that development. Moving from step A to step B to step C on the road up. It is rare that a team take a gigantic leap. Not that it should be unwelcome when that comes.
For many developing teams, there is an “aha” moment that catches everyone by surprise. That leap for the Magic is going to come as a surprise. It is going to sneak up and just happen. It might be this year.
The realistic expectation though is for the team to continue improving. Perhaps make the improvement they failed to make last year. And that is a return to respectability and competitiveness.
Hennigan has been right along, rebuilding is about making measurable progress and taking baby steps. It is a process.
In order to get to the Playoffs and a winning record, as Skiles wants, the Magic will have to get to respectability and competitiveness. No one will quite believe the Playoff buzz until the Magic prove they can win consistently.
So more than anything, it is this first step that is the baseline goal.
For the past three years, Orlando has had the worst win percentage in the league. By that measure — and there is no measure better than wins in this league — the Magic have been the worst team in the league.
The competition to make the Playoffs this year is even greater. And for a team that has not accomplished much of anything, asking them to take such a big leap — from the bottom of the NBA to the Playoffs — seems like a big ask.
There is still going to be learning and are still going to be struggles. This will not be a straight path even to competitiveness. There will have to be some bruises still along the way.
As the players noted on the day before the season begins, winning is not given by experience, it is earned by winning. And as determined as this group is, they still have to learn to do that basic act consistently.
No, Orlando’s season will not be a failure if they fail to make the Playoffs or get a winning record. It will be a failure if the team flounders again and fails to be competitive every night. It will be a failure if the players on this roster with all the ultimatums and talk about turning a corner for the second year fail to do so. If the Magic are counting ping pong balls in March, the season will be a failure.
The season will be a success if the Magic do turn that corner — Playoffs or not. It will be a success if the team wins on a consistent basis– stringing together wins and staying inside the Playoff conversation.
The season will be a success if the team proves that it has a core worth building around, somewhat proving the last three years were not in vain.
There is certainly a lot riding on this season. Skiles said part of what the Magic need to do this season is make that determination of which players are worth building around and how to move forward. The players have to prove they are worth the investment Rob Hennigan and the Magic have put in them.
The Magic this year need to show they have something worth believing in. How they do that is by just winning.
Winning as much as they can. Staying in the fight as long as they can. Serving notice on the rest of the league that the storm is coming.
There needs to be tangible progress. And significant progress. I have said 10 more wins would certainly serve that notice. That would be a significant step up in itself for this team. And more than ample proof the team can take that further step forward as they continue to grow.
It might be aiming a bit lower. It might be a bit more realistic.
Should the players have that as their goal? No. They should shoot for the stars and dream big. The Playoffs and the 41-win mark should be their goal. If it is not, they are not right for this team.
If they fail to meet those goals, they should be held accountable to them. They should recognize that failure and push forward. But that does not mean the season would have been completely lost in the way last year’s was.
The goal for this season is simple — compete and win enough to create a true winning faith in this core.