Where will the Orlando Magic find rim protection?
Khem Birch proved to be one of the Orlando Magic’s most pleasant surprises throughout the season. In fact, it felt like Magic fans could not get enough of him.
From the moment he stepped on the court for his first meaningful minutes against the Minnesota Timberwolves, his impact was clear. Khem Birch posted 12 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks. His ability to wall off the paint in pick and rolls was a sight for sore eyes. The Magic were looking for this kind of play.
And, yes, it felt like the team needed more of it.
Orlando is still trying to figure out this huge problem of rim protection. Orlando has tried to solve it with Serge Ibaka and Bismack Biyombo. Nikola Vucevic has not solved it either — rim protection is not his thing, no matter how much he has appeared to improve on that front. Birch helped solve that a bit. But he also may not be a long-term answer.
The Magic’s quest for rim protection remains a going concern. And the team’s inability to protect the paint remains a big problem. That was true from the first game of the season when the Magic gave up 70 points in the paint.
In all, Orlando finished 29th in the league, giving up 48.3 points in the paint per game. They finished a surprising 12th in the league in defended field goal percentage at the rim, giving up 64.4 percent. And they were 13th in the league in blocks per game.
So, it would seem Orlando as a team actually was able to change shots effectively at the rim. But they still gave up a ton of points int he paint. Not to mention, they often collapsed in the lane and gave up open 3-pointers.
Bismack Biyombo was fine at the rim, giving up 57.0 percent field goal shooting at the rim. Birch gave up 58.8 percent shooting at the rim. Vucevic gave up 65.9 percent, his worst mark since the NBA started tracking this statistic in 2014.
That would point to an inescapable conclusion regarding the Magic and their future.
Rim and paint protection are vital to a modern NBA defense. the Magic have always wanted to be a strong defensive team. This year the team showed some flashes of doing so. But eventually, they have to resolve this issue. Eventually, Orlando has to make these stops and focus on walling off the paint better.
Quite simply, the Magic did not do that in 2018.