Orlando Magic Grades: Toronto Raptors 107, Orlando Magic 85
The Orlando Magic face a deep 3-1 hole as Kawhi Leonard and the Toronto Raptors swept a pair of games at the Amway Center and put the team on the brink.
107. 81. 85. 38. Final
The Amway Center crowd was rolling. The energy was building and the Toronto Raptors for the first time all series look taken aback. They were not shocked like the final minutes of their Game 1 loss. They were staggered from a punch the Orlando Magic delivered to them.
A 9-0 start had the Amway Center rocking like never before and the team believing it could win. Forget the early turnovers. The team was finally getting inside the paint and finding open shooters with ease. The Magic were ready to make noise.
Then everything went silent. The turnovers continued and Orlando missed shots. The Toronto defense put its vice-like grip on the team. And then Kawhi Leonard took over.
Orlando never had an answer for Leonard.
Leonard scored 34 points on 12-for-20 shooting, weaving his way through Orlando’s defense and picking apart the team’s doubling and sometimes tripling schemes. The Magic were playing catch up again as their shots stopped falling and the turnovers picked up — 17 in the game for 21 points.
Jonathan Isaac‘s foul trouble throughout the first half and then eventually Aaron Gordon‘s foul trouble took all the team’s size and length off the floor. It allowed Leonard and Siakam to dominate and build a lead Orlando would never recover from.
The Raptors waltzed into Orlando and deconstructed the Magic again to take a 3-1 series lead with a 107-85 win at a sold-out Amway Center on Sunday. All the hopes and dreams for the Magic seem to be crumbling down.
Again, after the game, coach Steve Clifford said his team played with good effort. But their purpose of play was poor. They rode that initial wave playing the way they had to play but then the Raptors knocked them off kilter. They forced wild passes back to the perimeter and recovered on any mistake the Magic made.
Toronto pounced on every turnover and got out in transition. And with so much of the defense loaded up to stop Leonard, when he beat it everything was open on the 3-point line and beyond.
Adding some insult to injury, the Raptors bench outscored the Magic, adding to the deficit Orlando had to face. Norman Powell and Serge Ibaka combined for 29 points. Orlando just could not overcome its own mistakes or Toronto’s devastating attack and pressure defense.
The Magic played the right way for much of the first quarter and then lost that groove, never to find it again. And now Orlando finds itself in a series hole that will be even tougher to climb out of.
B. <a href=. F. Orlando Magic. AARON GORDON
C-. <a href=. C. Orlando Magic. NIKOLA VUCEVIC
D. Without a doubt, the game for the Orlando Magic turned when Jonathan Isaac picked up his second foul four minutes into the game. The Magic had already cooled off from their hot start, but the Toronto Raptors were able to get their offense really moving once again. <a href=. F. Orlando Magic. JONATHAN ISAAC
EVAN FOURNIER. C-. <a href=. G/F. Orlando Magic
A+. The Toronto Raptors know they have some huge advantages over the Orlando Magic. They know they can dump the ball to Pascal Siakam when they have mismatches, switch and rotate against pick and rolls and create havoc with their players. Orlando is the one chasing every game and every opportunity. This has been a tough series for the Magic to play.<p>Their ace in the hole remains Kawhi Leonard. There are times when the Magic — or any team — simply cannot stop him. Aaron Gordon has played admirable defense, but his best efforts have not slowed him down much. Nikola Vucevic is hedging and blitzing as he has never done before and Leonard is still able to beat it. Orlando is committing at least three defenders to every pick and roll with Leonard to keep him out of the paint.</p><p>They cannot stop him. So when the Magic’s best and longest defenders get in foul trouble, Leonard is simply able to feast. And then the Raptors can get decent 3-point looks whenever he sucks too many Magic players in the paint. This series is all about who has the best players and defenders and can execute against good defense. And that is Leonard, Siakam and the Raptors far and away.</p>. Raptors lead series 3-1. Game 5: Tues. at Toronto. TORONTO RAPTORS
Next. Orlando Magic searching for better purpose of play. dark
The Orlando Magic now trail the best-of-seven series 3-1. Game 5 is Tuesday night at 7 p.m. in Toronto.