Bismack Biyombo can make a huge defensive impact. He can also completely disappear. Looking at his numbers does not make it clear where his role is.
It is impossible to separate Bismack Biyombo from his contract in conversations with Orlando Magic fans. As everyone focuses on the long-term future of this team, his $17 million per year contract for the next year plus a player option hangs around the team like an albatross.
At various points this season, it has looked like Khem Birch — a similar energy defensive-minded rim protector — should have gotten more opportunity as the backup center. And then at other points, it has looked like the Magic could use Bismack Biyombo’s defensive presence or threat in the starting lineup over Nikola Vucevic.
Figuring out how best to deploy Biyombo has been one of the more difficult things the team has faced this year. He has not quite fit what the Magic need.
At times it seems like he changes the team’s whole defensive dynamic with his shot blocking and length. At other times, it seems like he drains the offense, unable to make simple catches, further constricting the Magic’s limited space on the floor.
It is easy to get frustrated with Biyombo for that reason. His season averages — 5.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game — are hardly anything to shake your head over. And, more importantly, Biyombo’s defensive impact has been unclear.
The team has a 110.4 defensive rating with Biyombo on the floor. Granted much of that has been with a pretty below-average second unit.
No matter how you slice it, that is not the defensive impact anyone imagined when the Magic signed Biyombo last summer.
But then you get comments like the one Aaron Gordon made after Wednesday’s win over the Dallas Mavericks.
"“He was doing his thing out there,” Gordon said about Biyombo’s 12-point, 12-rebound, 5-assist performance Wednesday. “Every time he starts, he has a great game. He’s a tremendous presence down there. When he has the confidence of starting and people are backing him and encouraging him, he makes great plays all game long.”"
The Magic opted to give Nikola Vucevic rest in that game — a planned move considering the minutes he had played this year and the desire to get Khem Birch some run at center. Coach Frank Vogel admitted before Wednesday’s game the only reason Bismack Biyombo even played in the prior night’s game against the New York Knicks was to keep his chance at an 82-game season intact.
With Vucevic getting some more time off, Biyombo is likely to see some of his on/off numbers decrease even more. Just look at how bad the team played against the Charlotte Hornets.
Fans can easily sense Biyombo is not going anywhere. That contract continues to weigh the team’s future plans down. Orlando will have to figure out how to get more from him. And maybe the most is as a starter.
As a starter this year, Biyombo is averaging 8.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in 25.3 minutes per game as a starter. A good chunk of that clear increase in his raw production is simply from playing more minutes. Jumping from 15.2 minutes per game as a reserve to 25 minutes per game as a starter should see an increase in raw production.
The Magic actually do get some of those raw counting numbers from Biyombo when he starts. A lot more than in bench lineups.
Of course, raw numbers are not what matters with Biyombo. What matters with him is still his defensive impact.
When Biyombo is on the court as a starter, the Magic have a 113.6 defensive rating. With Biyombo as a reserve, the Magic have a 109.3 defensive rating. And the net rating either way is not good.
Biyombo’s defensive impact feels blunted and stunted no matter how anyone breaks it down. And he is a drain on the offense, although less so with the starting lineup. That is part of the quagmire of Biyombo.
He can have a stellar game like he had against the Mavericks — the Magic had an 81.5 defensive rating with Biyombo in the game. And then he can have a poor game like he had against the Hornets — 128.3 points allowed per 100 possessions with Biyombo in the game.
There is no consistency there. That is the confounding nature of Biyombo.
It is simplistic to say — and probably accurate — that Biyombo has disappointed in his two seasons in Orlando. Even if you take out any considerations of his contract. The defensive impact Biyombo was supposed to bring is not particularly clear.
It certainly has not been what the team expected when they signed him.
The path forward is figuring out how best to use Biyombo. The Magic have few clues on how to do that.
The direction the team goes in the draft and free agency will likely determine Biyombo’s role. The roster is going to have a lot of shifting to come. Biyombo will be somewhere in the middle of that storm. The Magic still trying to figure out the best way to use him.
To the eye, he seems a better defensive player than just about any other center on the team. He certainly has a huge weakness on the offensive end. That is something the Magic have to figure out too.
Maybe some Magic players do feel an added jolt of confidence defensively with Biyombo behind them. Maybe at times, he does have that spark that makes him look like the player the team was willing to invest in.
Next: Orlando Magic Daily Podcast: Preparing for the future
The puzzle is not quite solvable yet. And there are few clues of how to do it right with him even now after two years under contract.