Momentum compounds for Orlando Magic, for better and for worse

The Orlando Magic struggle to turn the tide and build up momentum. Or it all comes at once. Against the Detroit Pistons, it came too late.

The Orlando Magic’s 19-0 run started very slowly. It did not seem like anything was out of the ordinary as the Detroit Pistons went up by 24 points and seemed like they were coasting to a victory.

It came from a Mario Hezonja 3-pointer. A typical play in a game that saw a record number of 3-pointers from the Pistons and plenty to answer from the Magic. Then came a Jonathon Simmons lay in two possessions later. Again nothing out of the ordinary.

Then a 3-pointer to Nikola Vucevic. Then another 3-pointer from Nikola Vucevic, on a close-quarter pass from Mario Hezonja.

Now it felt like things were different. The sparse crowd at Little Caesars Arena was starting to buzz, the anxiety was growing. The Pistons’ lead was shrinking.

By the time Jonathon Simmons completed the run with a lay in, forcing a Pistons timeout, the Magic were rolling. Their bench popped up to greet the players heading back to the bench and there was belief again. The team could finish this comeback and win the game.

The Pistons gave them a chance to cut the lead to a single possession too. But just as quickly as Orlando seemed to build their momentum, it all vanished too.

Nikola Vucevic drew a double team in the post as he tried to post up Tobias Harris. He fed it out to Hezonja beyond the arc for a deep 3-pointer. It hit off the back iron. And the air came rushing out of the balloon.

Harris worked a pick and roll to stop the bleeding and the run to give the Pistons a seven-point lead with about two minutes to play. Orlando came back to the other end and turned it over. The spigot was off and the Pistons would indeed coast to a 114-110 victory over the Magic.

The one thing that became clear for the Magic is that when things were good, they were very good. And when they were not, they were very not.

That has been the case for Orlando throughout the season. Things either seem to be going really well or really bad. And there seems to be little in the middle.

The Magic had to dig themselves out of a 24-point hole. That means they had to dig a 24-point hole to begin with.

And they did that with somewhat lackadaisical, uninspired play. Frustrated play, at the least.

Through the first three quarters, the Magic gave up 54.4 percent shooting and 16-for-26 shooting from beyond the arc to the Pistons. Detroit was able to get to their shots and drained 3-pointers at an incredible rate.

Orlando seemed to be sputtering along. The deficit remained in the 10-15 point range. And the Magic failed to make any kind of move for two quarters. Orlando had the game tied at 22 and the Pistons made their run to take control of the game.

Like Friday’s game, the Magic could not build momentum. Every time it seemed the team was prepared to make a run, it could not make the plays to sustain it. The team just seemed capable to keep the opponent tantalizingly close, but unable to make a move to get the lead.

That was the first three quarters for the Magic. Detroit found open shooters and squashed all opportunity to come back. Orlando’s hole got deeper and deeper. And the Magic could not find the energy to change the tide.

That is, just like Friday’s game, until the end. The Magic showed glimpses of their play but failed to build things on top of one another.

They failed to build any kind of momentum.

The defense, which had its moments in getting Orlando out of an early 10-point hole, never seemed to get itself back on track. Not until the end. The thing the Magic need most to build momentum was never quite there.

That is how the Pistons make 17 3-pointers and post a 112.8 offensive rating. They faced little resistance. Except in pockets of play. A short stretch in the first quarter, the long run in the fourth quarter.

Orlando has struggled to build momentum beyond these small pockets for some time. Part of that is the talent deficit the Magic face thanks to all the injuries. Orlando does not have the consistency without so many players.

Simmons runs hot and cold — really hot and cold. There are moments when he pounds the air out of the ball and is seemingly unable to score. The ball stagnates in these moments.

Yet, Simmons can also take over games. His relentless drives to the basket become efficient and effective. He drives into the lane and can kick out to the perimeter or finish at the rim.

And the Magic follow him, getting going downhill just like Simmons.

They can be the inefficient offensive team unable to create momentum and left forcing things. When they are forcing things, it feels defense is a chore too. Orlando has the effort, but not the execution on either end. The defense makes one mistake and the whole thing collapses.

Or they can be the team that seems to have unbelievable flow. The ball moves fluidly and the team makes those plays at the rim. They make those extra effort plays it takes to win come naturally.

The defense follows suit. Orlando flys to the ball and swarms opponents. Nikola Vucevic actually looks like a rim protector.

It all seems to happen at once.

Next: Grades: Detroit Pistons 114, Orlando Magic 110

The Magic still struggle to make it happen all the time. And that is what found themselves scrambling at the end, hoping momentum would turn back in their favor.