Orlando Magic’s biggest room for growth is on defense

The Orlando Magic have not lived up to their own expectations after 11 games into the season and will need a resurgence of defensive pressure in order to get back to the basics.

The Orlando Magic entered the season with Playoff expectations.

After securing the seventh seed in the 2019 Eastern Conference Playoffs, the eventual NBA champion Toronto Raptors eliminated the Orlando Magic in five games after the Magic stole Game 1 from Kawhi Leonard and company.

Some early season lows have not changed the Magic’s outlook on this season. Despite a 4-7 start, Orlando still is aiming at the playoffs. The team is, after all, tied with the Atlanta Hawks for eighth in the Eastern Conference. FiveThirtyEight gives the Magic an 88-percent chance to make the Playoffs.

This is not the start the Magic wanted for sure. They believed continuity from last year’s team would allow them to hit the ground running and get off to a fast start — especially with a fairly home-heavy start to the season.

Struggling near the bottom of the standings or within the pack of the Eastern Conference at this early stage will put pressure on the team to win in more difficult parts of the schedule.

Early on this season, the team has struggled to shoot and score consistently. The team’s defense has been the calling card. While the Magic rank third in the league in defensive rating, giving up 100.6 points per 100 possessions, there are still clear flaws defensively.

The numbers suggest the Magic are a potentially elite defense. But in several key moments, their defense has let them down — not to mention recent slippages on that end.

The lack of defensive intensity can be the elephant in the room in team meetings. While the Orlando Magic may be ranked higher than Kawhi Leonard’s LA Clippers and Joel Embiid‘s Philadelphia 76ers in defensive efficiency, this team will need to better on that side of the ball.

The Magic have a 4-7 record. In six of the seven games Orlando has lost thus far, the team gave up more than 100 points. No easy feat considering the team’s overall defensive strength and the team’s relatively slow 98.6 possessions per 48 minutes.

Sometimes your best defense is your offense. But when you have no superstar offensive players then your defense has to be extra special. And that has had to be the case with the offense struggling to get itself going.

The Magic are missing the extra part. They have to maintain their spot as one of the best defensive teams in the league or the whole season could quickly fall apart. That was mostly the case when the team lost six of seven games before this homestand began.

Orlando has to do a better job maintaining its focus and intensity defensively. It is clear even one slip can have catastrophic results for this team.

To be more consistent the coaching staff will have to take advantage of the team’s defensive capabilities. This team does not have any lockdown defenders like Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Ben Simmons or Joel Embiid.

The Magic have used Aaron Gordon as the team’s primary perimeter defender. While he is more than capable and a still up-and-coming defender, he is still prone to mistakes. Aaron Gordon struggled to track Ben Simmons throughout Wednesday’s game in the first half and was part of the team’s problem getting into the ball and playing physically on the perimeter.

That changed in the fourth quarter, highlights with a block at the rim that sparked a fast-break 3-pointer for the team. Gordon has shown he can be a stellar defender — his 1.1 defensive box plus-minus is in line with last year’s number so far and the Magic have a 102.0 defensive rating with Gordon on the floor. But he still is building his reputation and his consistency as a one-on-one player.

Jonathan Isaac is putting in his bid to be an All-Defensive team player. But the Magic still prefer to use him as a roamer to help protect the rim rather than a primary one-on-one defender.

Gordon is still the one getting the assignment on the best perimeter defender as a ball container whereas Jonathan Isaac more finish plays at the rim and disrupts passing lanes.

Both of these young players are still developing and growing. They will still make mistakes defensively despite their massive talent. But they are both assets the Magic must use to stay sharp defensively.

Everything the Magic will do begins with Jonathan Isaac, Aaron Gordon and Mo Bamba.

Coach Steve Clifford has to consistently put these three guys on the opposing team’s best players if the team is going to improve defensively. The team has to allow these players to grow defensively by showing them it trusts them to put up a great fight against the best offensive players in the NBA.

Not just in half-court sets, but 94-feet, the same way Patrick Beverly does the opponent and makes them work for every point. And does he make them work.

This style of play is contagious and will convey attention to details when it comes to the defensive side of the ball. It will also allow Issac to do what he does best at this point in his career.

You have to cut the head off of the snake.

Orlando Magic

Isaac is probably the best perimeter defender on the squad and should have the responsibilities and duties of stopping the opponent’s best player. You can slide Isaac on point guards and shooting guards, he can play, at best, four different positions defensively.

And so can Gordon. His athleticism is off the charts on both sides of the ball. He provides the type of energy a team wants from your its second-best defender.

For now, the Magic use him as the best perimeter defender. Clifford opted to match Gordon’s minutes with Simmons in Wednesday’s win. That is a tactic he used in the playoffs with Gordon defending Leonard.

Mohamed Bamba still has the highest ceiling of the three defensively. He could change into a modern-day Dikembe Mutombo with his ability to protect the paint and defend passing lanes.

Bamba is still gaining an understanding of the NBA game. The team has a team-best 83.4 defensive rating with Bamba on the floor. His block numbers are similar to where they were last year and he is subtly making an impact challenging shots in the lane, even if he lacks the highlight-reel plays.

As he gains physical strength and the game continues to slow down for him, his skills should become more evident and valuable.

The Magic are making good on a lot of things defensively. But it is so clear there is potential for more.

Clifford and his coaching staff have to figure it out quickly as the Magic do not want to lose too much ground in the East. If the Playoffs started today they would not make it.

But the Playoffs are more than five months away which means Clifford and his staff have time to right the ship before the season heats up.

This is just a start, but it will start on that side of the ball if the Magic truly believe that they will be able to repeat the postseason success from last year.