Jerian Grant the latest player to step up for Orlando Magic

Jerian Grant has had a rough season. He was taken out of the rotation. But pressed into duty, he stepped up to the plate and delivered for the Orlando Magic.

It has not been the year Jerian Grant or the Orlando Magic wanted. Not anywhere close.

The Magic acquired Jerian Grant in a bad-salary-for-bad-salary swap as a flier in a free agency year. Grant had bounced around the league some already showing some promise but no general consistent improvement. Orlando, still rebuilding, seemed like a good place to give Grant the kind of role to map out a NBA future.

It did not work out. He is averaging a career-worst 4.1 points per game. He is shooting worse than 40 percent from the floor and a 47.8 percent effective field goal percentage.

More of the same from his time with the New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls was not going to cut it. Not in a contract year and not for a team that was trying to make progress while giving young players a chance to grow.

The Magic were statistically near their worst with Grant on the floor — a -10.3 net rating and a sub-100 offensive rating. Only Mohamed Bamba has a worse on-court net rating out of rotation players.

There was clearly a moment where the Magic had to change. And Isaiah Briscoe took over the backup point guard role in January and has never let it go, using his mix of size, defensive peskiness and driving ability to make a bigger difference for the team.

Grant was continuing to work in practice, but he was no longer part of the regular rotation. His turn would come around in a time when the Magic are in a pinch. He would have to step up.

Sunday’s win over the Toronto Raptors required Grant to be ready to play in a big spot once again. Isaiah Briscoe suffered a concussion either in Friday’s game or Saturday’s practice and was put into the league’s concussion protocols. That pressed Grant into duty.

He delivered one of the best games of his frustrating season.

In 21 minutes, Grant scored seven points on 3-for-5 shooting and added seven assists. He drove into the lane and dished out to the perimeter effectively. He organized the team’s offense and got the team running through its sets.

Defensively he held his ground. In one instance he was able to rip the ball away from a driving player.

Outside a second-quarter stint where Kyle Lowry got his game rolling and the Raptors closed the gap, Jerian Grant hardly looked like the player who lost his rotation spot. He looked like the player who the Magic hoped he could be when they acquired him.

He was steady and consistent. He hit open shots when the ball came to him and managed the offense with the second unit effectively. That is easier to do now in lineups that feature Terrence Ross, Evan Fournier and Aaron Gordon.

Grant’s success was as much about coach Steve Clifford finding a more effective second unit too. Then again, that quartet has a -15.6 net rating in 72 minutes together. In nine minutes together Sunday, that group posted a 131.1 offensive rating and 94.1 defensive rating. A solid output in a small sample size.

That was done with Khem Birch on the floor too. There was another player who has stepped up in the face of injury.

Long out of the rotation to allow rookie Mohamed Bamba to play, Khem Birch waited for his opportunity too. When Bamba went out with an injury, Birch was ready to step in. Just like he was last year as he waited for his opportunity, Birch immediately provided a solid defensive presence and shot blocking, matching and in some cases exceeding Bamba’s. He at least brought a greater level of consistency to the position.

Clifford has said in the past, every player on the roster will have his moment in the rotation. The 82-game schedule is a winding road and not everyone makes it through completely unscathed.

The Magic have been fortunate not to face too many major injuries this year. Outside of Jonathan Isaac‘s brief absence in November and Mohamed Bamba’s injury now, the team has come away from this season relatively unscathed.

That makes the team seeing this kind of play from so many key players all the more impressive. They have stayed ready for the rare occurrence when their number has been called. And when it has, they have largely played well.

Grant deserves the credit first and foremost for being professional and waiting for his opportunity to come around again. It is just one game and Briscoe is not likely to lose his rotation spot provided he is not out too long. Grant will have to prove himself again in Tuesday’s game against the Knicks.

But credit should go to Clifford and his staff too.

The fact so many players have stepped up in these big moments — both the starters pulling more weight and the reserves entering the rotation — is a credit to the coaches keeping everyone engaged and prepared to play. The whole team seems to be pulling together. And everyone seems invested and ready to play when their number is called.

Grant will have to do it again, of course. One game does not establish a pattern. But the Magic will need him and plenty others to step up to continue this Playoff race. Probably in unexpected ways.

The early returns are showing the Magic are ready for the next man to step up. They were Sunday, at least.