The Orlando Magic had moments where they slipped in their win over the New Orleans Pelicans. But their defense is reeling them back and leading to wins.
Steve Clifford called timeout near the midpoint of the third quarter. His Orlando Magic team had played sloppy through the first half with 11 turnovers and held the lead despite it. That was not something sustainable for his team at all. Especially against a hard-charging team like the New Orleans Pelicans.
They will put pressure on their opponents with their pace and every little mistake is one they can pounce on quickly. The Magic’s then-17 point lead was in a precarious spot if this trend continued.
Clifford said he had a simple message at that timeout with 7:10 to play in the quarter: 13. That was how many points Orlando had given up in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Pelicans cut their 22 point deficit to 17 but the storm was coming.
It did not help Orlando came out of the timeout with their second and third turnover of the quarter out of that. New Orleans had the lead down to 15.
But that number was all the Magic would need to lock themselves back to attention. Orlando burned off a 15-0 run to send the lead back to 30 at 91-61 with three minutes to play in the quarter, effectively ending any hope New Orleans had for a comeback. The Magic would win 119-96 for their third straight win and fifth straight win at the Amway Center.
The Magic had the Pelicans’ number from the start defensively, forcing them to miss 13 of their first 14 shots. They were flying around to the ball and bringing multiple defenders to stop them and any drives into the lane.
The Magic were tied together defensively and that proved to be enough to overcome any of their mistakes.
"“We’ve got some really talented guys on the defensive end,” Aaron Gordon said. “We’re all tied together. When you put the system and talent together, the technique is starting to come together. We’re starting to help each other a little bit more. It’s hard to guard anybody in this league one-on-one. So now it’s three people to the ball and two to help and recover.”"
Orlando was putting in extra efforts from the start. If one player got beat, the next level of the defense was there to stop him. And then they were there to recover to the next pass.
Players were flying around to follow the ball and guard the next man, leaving New Orleans with only a contested shot as an option. There was no outlet for them to take.
Orlando was dialed in from the start defensively with strong help-side and a cavalcade of challenges in and around the rim. New Orleans made only 23 of 55 shots in the paint and 4 of its 16 second-chance points. Orlando tallied 10 blocks for the game, reacting and recovering in time to challenge shots.
The Magic were making plays. This kind of defensive effort is a long time coming and has become who this team is at its core.
"“It kind of takes time to understand the way Cliff wants us to play and his defense and his system,” Evan Fournier said. “Now it is becoming automatic. We’ve really gotten better defensively for sure.”“We’ve had bad moments, but overall we’ve been good lately. Just being locked in and having ball pressure, just being physical. It could be better at times obviously. I thought tonight was a really good effort.”"
The Magic knew they were far from perfect. Evan Fournier said there was a stretch in the second quarter where the team turned the ball over and lost some of its defensive togetherness. Clifford said it was difficult to judge the defense because of all those uncharacteristic miscues.
But the defense tied itself together and got things moving back in the right direction by the third quarter. That 15-0 run was built on the defense as Orlando forced New Orleans into six misses and one turnover. The Magic blocked two shots in that stretch.
Orlando has made a name for itself defensively throughout the season. The team is now ninth in the league, giving up 107.2 points per 100 possessions. Since the All-Star Break, Orlando is second, giving up 104.6 points per 100 possessions.
Despite a few struggles, that defense has propelled the team to a 6-6 record since the break. Orlando has made its mark mostly on defense. It has slowly become the team’s identity and the key to its victories. Especially during this homestand, where the Magic have a league-best 90.6 defensive rating in the last three outings.
"“Tonight our defense was great,” Nikola Vucevic said. “Our activity wasn’t always perfect. We made mistakes but we were able to recover from those. We were aggressive all over the floor. That’s what we need to do. We have a lot of length especially with [Aaron Gordon], [Jonathan Isaac] and myself out there. They can cover a lot of space for us. Our defense was really good for 48 minutes.”"
Clifford said before Wednesday’s game that a key to the game would be getting their defense set. While Orlando has done a good job limiting turnovers, they still struggle with transition defense. New Orleans would provide a solid test.
Even with the turnovers the Magic made, they largely passed that test. They were able to get themselves settled and defend at a high level. It was central to their win in every way.
Opponents are noticing. Learning how to break the Magic’s defense is quickly becoming an issue for any team the Magic face.
They still have to find their consistency. But the seeds have clearly been laid this year. And even on a night where they make mistakes, Orlando still could rely on its defense to reel the team back in.
"“They play for each other,” Pelicans forward Ian Clark said after the game. “Our game plan notes was getting off the ball early because they load the paint. They have a lot of long guys and they can switch a lot of things. They got in transition so I think their defense kind of starts their offense.”"
This season has at the least laid the seeds of the Magic’s future identity defensively. They cannot rely on their defense to carry them wholly, but it is defense that will carry them into the Playoffs.