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Orlando Magic Week 6 Takeaways: Mental growth and fortitude

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Dec 1, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic (9) celebrates with forward Tobias Harris (12) after their game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. The Magic won 96-93. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 1, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic (9) celebrates with forward Tobias Harris (12) after their game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. The Magic won 96-93. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nikola Vucevic, Orlando Magic, David West, Indiana Pacers
Mar 10, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic (9) takes a shot against Indiana Pacers forward David West (21) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

By Sean Guest

Old habits die hard.

Going into Saturday’s game against the Clippers, the Magic were on a five-game winning streak and the difficulties they had closing out games early in the season seemed a million miles away.

Yet, up 10 points with 5:27 left on the clock, the old uncertainty reared its ugly head.

The ball stopped moving, and Orlando allowed Jamal Crawford to spark a comeback that eventually saw his Clippers win the game.

All the hard work that went into beating the New York Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz evaporated in a split second, as did the talk of snaring a playoff spot.

Still, it is important to remember Crawford may not have caused the damage he did had Victor Oladipo been on the floor throughout. His brief absence was glaring, as without him the Magic lacked a stopper who could stay in front of Crawford and force the ball out of his hands.

Things did not exactly go well on the other end of the floor either, as Orlando failed to make the most of its possessions, too often settling for questionable looks.

It is a shame, especially as the Magic had all the momentum until that point.

Thankfully the schedule has given Scott Skiles a couple of days to look at the tape and try to pinpoint exactly where things went wrong, before the road trip resumes in Denver on Tuesday.

If he wants to get straight back to winning ways he should try to focus on the positives, like Oladipo’s 24 points, Payton’s 21 points and the fact his team shot 44 percent from the field.

There are plenty of other positives to be taken from the past week too, even if claiming the scalp of one of the NBA’s elite (albeit slightly inconsistent at present) teams is not one of them.

Next: Road Warriors