Orlando Magic’s youth will help Steve Clifford avoid Charlotte Hornets’ fate

Stagnation is the enemy

Stagnation is the enemy in the NBA.

Especially when a team is only on the fringes of the playoffs. And the Charlotte Hornets, having established an identity that indeed carried over to new coach James Borrego, moved on from Steve Clifford.

This is the fate many worried about when the Magic initially hired Clifford. They did not want to go through a meandering five years of staying on the outskirts of the playoffs without much sign of progress.

Whether the Magic end up in that same space is still unknown.

Orlando’s bet doubling down on their roster from last year is about consistency and believing in the foundation Clifford built. It is also a bet on the continued growth and development of the team’s young players.

Clifford was brought in first and foremost to establish a foundation and prove what this roster can do. As he did in Charlotte, he has accomplished that in his first year.

There is no way to control for injuries or injuries to key players. The wrong player gets hurt, few teams could fully recover to full strength. The Magic hope they have built depth to withstand that. They hope to have a balance roster of several solid players to boost the team.

But Orlando has one advantage over those Charlotte teams.

The Magic appear to have depth and young players ready to and expected to take on a larger mantle. It may not happen all at once, but Orlando seems capable of continuing to grow in many different directions.

The Magic, like those Hornets had to, have to improve on offense. A better offense will create a better team and a team capable of climbing the ranks.

But what makes the Magic different is their youth. And it is the development of those young players that will determine whether Clifford can build a team moving up the Eastern Conference ladder or one that will resemble his teams with Charlotte.