Orlando Magic Daily Roundtable: Midseason misgivings
What is the biggest disappointment of this season?
Philip Rossman-Reich (@philiprr_omd): To me, it is that this team lacks the will to win, or at least improve. I feel like I am watching the same sad story on repeat. The Orlando Magic are still the bad team that cannot get out of their own way and do not seem to know how to trust each other. Many of these players have been through several coaches and they do not seem willing to buy in and, at times, sacrifice to win. We saw what the Magic can do when they do this. This group knows what it is capable of. And yet, they cannot reach back and find that and do it consistently. It is the little things that frustrate me — the poor box outs, the hanging heads after missed shots and the lack of attention to details. It all adds up.
Ricky Scricca (@scricca1): I mentioned a few times heading into the season’s first road trip that we would learn a lot about this team, and whether or not that start was sustainable, based on how they rebounded from the inevitable losses they would suffer over that stretch. Of course, injuries have played a big part, but we learned that this team does not have the collective mental fortitude (whether you want to blame that on the individuals or the environment is another debate) to do consistently execute the most basic, small things necessary to compete. Before the season began it seemed the Magic’s psyche had changed from last year and they would be playing all of 2018 with a chip on their shoulder. It is very disappointing how quickly and drastically that collapsed.
Spencer R. Henderson (@SpencerRHenders): The biggest disappointment of this season clearly was the way Frank Vogel used his lottery pick. Or the lack of him using his lottery pick. Last year the organization traded their lottery pick and this year they did not play him enough for him to develop. Usually, a losing team uses their lottery pick to help develop their skills in their first year. Before Jonathan Isaac got hurt he was only averaged 18.9 minutes per game. That is unacceptable. There is no rookie lottery pick playing from last year’s draft averaging less than Isaac. The Magic are not good enough not to play their lottery picks — probably even before Isaac’s injury when the team was 8-4. And even if their record was as good as a team like the Boston Celtics, who allow their rookie Jayson Tatum to average more than 30 minutes per game, they still need to allow Jonathan Isaac to play multiple positions to develop some sort of chemistry between him, Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic.
Orlando Magic
Zach Palmer (@FmrTankCommandr): I would have to say it is the fact the Magic players just do not play fundamentally sound basketball. People like to point to youth when players are not fundamentally sound. But let’s be completely honest, Orlando really is not a young team in terms of basketball years anymore. Sure, from an age perspective this is a young team but these guys have played enough seasons at an NBA level to box out or to make an easy rotation. Well, I guess that is not actually the case since the Magic continue to prove that they cannot do any of these things on a consistent basis.
Patrick Flynn (@PFlynn33): The Magic showed their potential with the abilities they have as a team early on and then completely fell off the table. Their 3-point percentage was bound to drop. But, after seeing how good they can play together and then take 100 steps backward, showing lackluster effort and will has been frustrating. Even with all of the injuries the Magic have had, it feels like the drop off since the first 12-15 games has been too drastic.