Orlando Magic Daily
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What we learned about the Orlando Magic this preseason

By Alvaro Grullon

Oct 20, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel signals the play during the fourth quarter of a basketball game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Amway Center. The Magic won 111-114. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 20, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel signals the play during the fourth quarter of a basketball game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Amway Center. The Magic won 111-114. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /
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Will Bynum, Atlanta Hawks, Bismack Biyombo, Serge Ibaka, Orlando magic
Oct 16, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic center Bismack Biyombo (11) and forward Serge Ibaka (7) block the shot by Atlanta Hawks guard Will Bynum (6) during the second half at Amway Center. The Hawks won 105-98. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Defense

With the acquisition of Ibaka and Biyombo and the hiring of Frank Vogel, a defensive minded coach, the Magic expect their defense to improve significantly this upcoming season.

Defense has been an area of concern for the Magic ever since Dwight Howard departed, especially their interior defense.

Throughout the preseason there were some good flashes of the potential the new and improved defense will look like under coach Voguel, but there was also some cause for concerns.

Much like the offense, the Magic defense is currently a work in progress and was unpredictable during preseason. At times the defense looked solid with tremendous rim protection from Ibaka and Biyombo and quick hands on the perimeter from Payton and Fournier leading to easy steals and transition baskets.

But there were also moments when the defense was non-existent and it seemed like the Magic could not stop the opposition from scoring.  Simply watch the game at Miami or the first half of the New Orleans game to see an example of it.

The Magic allowed the opposition to score 106.1 points per game in preseason, which ranks the team 24th in the NBA, with a defensive rating of 104.8. The Magic also allowed opponents to shoot the ball extremely well. Their opponents shot 45.6 percent from the field and 39.3 percent from behind the arc.

Those are all some disturbing stats when you consider that this team will have to rely on their defense to win games and keep their Playoffs hopes alive.

Additionally, the Magic averaged 44.3 rebounds, 7.9 steals and 4.6 blocks per game in preseason, which are not major improvements from last year.