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Orlando Magic Daily Mailbag Volume 20: Development

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Dec 22, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel coaches against the New York Knicks during the third quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 22, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel coaches against the New York Knicks during the third quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nikola Vucevic, Frank Vogel, Bismack Biyombo, Serge Ibaka, Orlando Magic
Sep 26, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel, center Bismack Biyombo (11), center Nikola Vucevic (9) and forward Serge Ibaka (7) pose for a photo during media day at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Before Friday night’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, I would have said it is not going very well — and the stats back that up. But after that game, there is at least a clue to how this works.

I think generally, the Magic do not want to do too much different with whatever center combination is on the floor. Bismack Biyombo and Serge Ibaka probably get a bit more freedom to roam and go for blocks. But that is also part of the problem.

Generally, the Magic’s defensive strategy is to corral and direct guards toward the corner or baseline. Nikola Vucevic has proven the most adept at this. When players go for blocks though, there is a tendency to overplay and leave the weak side open. The Magic have done a poor job of late having a guard pinch down to cover the weak side big.

So while Serge Ibaka and Bismack Biyombo would seemingly be a great combination for protecting the rim. The truth is that duo has struggled.

Orlando has a 107.5 defensive rating with Ibaka and Biyombo on the floor together. Teams average 13.4 points in the paint per game against this duo too.

Things are not all bad. The duo may be performing poorly together, but both Ibaka and Biyombo have rounded into form defensively.

Biyombo is giving up 48.6 percent field goal percentage at the rim and Ibaka is giving up 49.3 percent at the rim. So both players are starting to do a lot better defensively. For whatever reason, they have not worked well together.

Friday’s win over the Los Angeles Lakers proved exactly how devastating they can be together. What I think is important for them is to avoid overhelping and chasing blocks. Both are more than capable of defending their own man and challenging shots without getting out of rebounding position.