Orlando Magic Grades: Atlanta Hawks 111, Orlando Magic 92

The Orlando Magic looked outmatched on both sides of the ball, and that led to a 111-92 loss to the Atlanta Hawks at the Amway Center.

VS.

	1	2	3	4	T
Hawks	23	29	26	33	111
Magic	26	21	18	27	92

The Orlando Magic did not do anything particularly well on either side of the ball, and it resulted in a 111-92 blowout loss against the Atlanta Hawks at Amway Center on Wednesday.

The biggest negative takeaway from this game was the poor defensive effort against the 23rd ranked offense in the league. The Hawks scored about nine points more than their average. They shot 54.3 percent from the field and 10 for 19 from three.

The Hawks got everything they wanted offensively, and it started with their pick and roll plays. The Magic had absolutely no answer for any high ball screen set for Dennis Schroder, and the Hawks were able to penetrate their defense with ease.

Atlanta also finished with 27 assists, which is more than the average of every team besides the Golden State Warriors.

“From the jump, we seemed like we didn’t execute completely on the defensive end,” Aaron Gordon said. “And that kind of bled into the offense and the whole game.”

The Magic defense, which has fallen to 19th in the league in defensive efficiency, really needs to step up in order for them to rack up more wins.

Offensively, the Magic had trouble with the heavy pressure from the fifth-ranked Hawks defense. They shot 43 percent from the field, 32.1 percent from three, and had 17 turnovers, all worse than their team average.

A-. Aaron Gordon was one of the few positives for the Orlando Magic tonight. He continued to play well on the offensive end, and that is a very encouraging sign for the Magic.Gordon shot 6 for 11 from the field, 2 for 4 from three, and racked up 15 points and 10 rebounds total. He shot with confidence, moved well off the ball, and even crashed the offensive glass for four offensive rebounds. This was another encouraging sign for Gordon, and he has been playing better offensively of late.It was difficult for him to have a huge effect defensively against a team like the Atlanta Hawks that plays with such balance and ball movement, but he was often the only player on the Magic playing with a lot of energy on that side. He even followed a bad turnover with a chase down almost-block that was counted as goaltending. It was still encouraging effort-wise. Overall a solid game for Gordon, who continues to improve as he gets used to his role.. SF. Orlando Magic. AARON GORDON

SERGE IBAKA. C-. <a rel=. F/C. Orlando Magic

B-. In his first game back in the starting lineup, <a rel=. PG. Orlando Magic. ELFRID PAYTON

A. The Atlanta Hawks wanted revenge for the last meeting between these two teams, and they got just that. Right from the start, they came out with a lot of energy on both ends and led for essentially the entire game.The Hawks used their defensive strengths to take advantage of an offensively challenged Magic team. They are fourth in the league in forcing turnovers, and their perimeter pressure really got into the Magic’s heads. Their length and versatility caused turnovers and bad shots for the Magic. Coach Mike Budenholzer is probably proud of their defensive effort.Offensively, they moved the ball well and used the pick and roll to their advantage en route to a very high scoring game. Overall, a strong performance for a Hawks team that looks primed for a playoff berth.. 19-16. 5th East. ATLANTA HAWKS