Orlando Magic Grades: Miami Heat 90, Orlando Magic 89
The Orlando Magic struggled to shoot and had difficulty executing down the stretch as they fell in preseason action to the Miami Heat.
Final. 89. 38. 90. 110
The Orlando Magic were going for the win. Their starters stayed in the game as things tightened up at the end of the game against the Miami Heat. It is that time to turn toward the regular season with only eight days to go until the regular season opens.
The team will have to start showing signs it is ready.
A gutsy effort through a poor shooting night that saw the team erase an 18-point deficit was enough to be happy with in some respects. But none of that matters without the finish. Although the team is not likely to make any final judgments off this one preseason game.
Aaron Gordon hit a 3-pointer with about 90 seconds left to give the Magic a one-point lead. It looked like the team was going to have the killer instinct to put it away.
But the Heat did not cooperate, even with the team’s starters out.
Rodney McGruder answered that 3-pointer with a runner to complete his strong game. The Magic could not find their own answer on the other end.
Aaron Gordon missed a 3-pointer at the top of the key after a good ball reversal to find him. D.J. Augustin fell into the rebound and set up an iso for Nikola Vucevic in the post. But he could not find the bottom of the basket with his hook shot.
A missed Tyler Johnson 3-pointer later and the Magic had another chance. But Evan Fournier could not hit his runner, completing a frustrating evening.
Left with one chance and 1.6 seconds to play, Orlando had the chance to inbound for the win. But Nikola Vucevic’s pass sailed over Aaron Gordon’s head as he tried to break free from Bam Adebayo. It ended a frustrating game of missed shots and sometimes shoddy execution.
The Heat defeated the Magic 90-89 at American Airlines Arena on Monday as the regular season starts to draw nearer.
The final result again matters little in the preseason. The team still has time to get itself right and the team is not likely to panic over a stretch of poor execution. The veteran players will know how to get themselves right when this situation comes again.
But there was still plenty for Steve Clifford to pull apart and be concerned with. The sometimes stagnant nature of the offense and the missed shots led to missed assignments in transition. The team still fouled a bit too much. And its execution was hardly clean.
Those are the things that likely will draw Clifford’s eye more than anything else.
But there is that final score and those final 90 seconds that also show the Magic still have a long way to go.
G/F. Orlando Magic. EVAN FOURNIER. C. Steve Clifford said after the game he is not concerned with his veteran players’ poor shooting performance. He trusts that those players know how to get themselves ready for the regular season when the time eventually comes. Still, there has to be a fair bit of concern with <a href=
A-. The Orlando Magic point guard position has gotten plenty of attention and focus throughout the offseason. Mostly for what the Magic do not have. <a href=. G. Orlando Magic. JERIAN GRANT
A-. Nikola Vucevic continues to look at home in the Orlando Magic’s new offense. And it feels like Steve Clifford is setting it up to take advantage of all of his offensive skills. That is all that he has raved about throughout the preseason as he tries to defend Vucevic. And it is undeniable how much skill Vucevic has.<p>Orlando ran a lot of its offense through Vucevic throughout the game. He did a good job in the post early on and mixed his shots as the Magic want him to. Vucevic led the team with 22 points on 9-for-18 shooting. He added 14 rebounds for good measure.</p><p>Vucevic also had three assists. And throughout the game, he proved a solid fulcrum for the offense. Yes, his defense is still not ideal or dominant by any stretch of the word. He is willing to make contact and make the right rotations. But he struggled at times to deal with <a rel=. C. Orlando Magic. NIKOLA VUCEVIC
B. A big key for Aaron Gordon this year is to increase his efficiency as a scorer. And if he is not doing that then to find a different way to contribute to the team. That is a big task for Gordon to understand. And it is easy to see when he falls into bad habits.<p>But Monday in Miami, it was easy to see what this looks like for Gordon on a bad shooting night, per se. He found ways to contribute in a lot of different ways and never lost his aggression in a positive way. When the team was struggling down 18 points in the third quarter, Gordon was a big catalyst for the team making a comeback. And he had his opportunities late — even if he missed them.</p><p>Gordon finished with 12 points on just 5-for-17 shooting. He added eight rebounds and three assists along with three steals. He had everything in his game working except for the shooting. And he made a good impact for the team regardless.</p>. F. Orlando Magic. AARON GORDON
C+. The Miami Heat have dealt with a number of injuries in the early part of this preseason. And the group is still coming together and getting whole. They were certainly at a different stage it felt then the Orlando Magic. But it felt like they were energized by having some of those players back. Or at least their defense was.<p>The Heat were sloppy. Probably sloppier than the Magic for much of the night. They had 23 turnovers on the night. Miami only shot slightly better. But the team had more moments of clarity and that helped the team pull away in the third quarter.</p><p>That is kind of how the preseason goes. The Heat did some good things but they were nowhere near as crisp as they will need to be.</p>. 1-3. . MIAMI HEAT
Jonathan Isaac changes the Orlando Magic's defense. dark. Next
The Orlando Magic return home Wednesday to take on the Memphis Grizzlies in their penultimate preseason game.