The Orlando Magic find themselves on a three-game winning streak after beating four of the worst teams in the NBA.
You have to beat who you are supposed to beat.
That is the first step into becoming a playoff contender, something this young Orlando Magic team had problems with last year.
And although that team made the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, this team will not sneak up on opponents like last year. That might explain the relative dissatisfaction with the team’s 11-11 start to the season.
Beating the bottom-ranked teams was a constant struggle for this team near the end of the season. Last year, the Orlando Magic lost to the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Memphis Grizzlies and Washington Wizards en route to making the seventh seed. Those four losses definitely played a role in the Magic not being able to secure the sixth seed as they and the Brooklyn Nets finished the year with a 42-40 overall record.
I mean who knows what the Orlando Magic could have done against the Philadelphia 76ers, a team the Magic beat during that playoff run by 20-plus points at the Amway Center.
But this is a new year with a new vibe entering a season where the Magic began with the confidence they will make the Playoffs in consecutive years. Even with that level of focus on the Magic, the team has reeled off four straight wins albeit against losing teams in the NBA.
But all those wins count the same. The Magic are now 11-11, .500 for the first time since the fourth game of the year. And, more importantly, they are 2.5 games ahead of the Detroit Pistons for that final playoff spot a quarter of the way into the season.
First, the Orlando Magic beat the Golden State Warriors 100-96 on Sunday at the Amway Center. This would have been a more satisfying win if Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant were on the roster. But Curry and Thompson were both out with injuries and Durant is sitting out the year with the Brooklyn Nets.
But a win is a win in this league. And every win matters at the end when it comes to determining seeding within contenders.
In this particular matchup, Evan Fournier scored 32 points and Jonathan Isaac added nine boards to take down the new-look Warriors. Nothing to brag about, but a must-win game early in the season for a team who has their eyes set on the postseason.
After that decisive victory, the Magic traveled to the nation’s capital and beat the Wizards 127-120. In this matchup, Evan Fournier followed up his performance against the Warriors with a 31-point performance inside of Capital One Arena. Another team the Magic should expect to win against.
Evan Fournier received offensive contributions from Markelle Fultz (a career-high 20 points, six assists) and D.J. Augustin (24 points and six boards).
These are the type of winnable games that will help when it comes to seeding at the end of the year, keeping that level of focus and energy shouldn’t be as big of an issue as it was last year.
The next day the Orlando Magic faced the Phoenix Suns at the Amway Center and scored a season-high 128 points. This time Aaron Gordon led the way with 32 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Terrence Ross (22 points) and Fournier (21 points) picked up the slack, combining for 43 points between the two.
This was a great offensive win for the team. it looks as if Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier have matured and developed into solid rotational players for an Eastern Conference Playoff team.
The Magic then added a fourth win Friday, using their defense and four blocks from Jonathan Isaac to power the team past the Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The Magic got another solid performance from Ross (21 points) and Fournier (18 points) to pace the team in addition to big plays down the stretch to secure the win.
These four wins were very important for a team that plans on participating in this year’s postseason. Every win builds confidence for individual players and for the team as a whole.
The Magic have taken care of business against the teams they should defeat. Orlando is 10-3 against teams currently under .500. The Magic are winning games they certainly should feel they can win. Their only win against a winning team came at home against the 76ers.
Orlando still has work to do to pick up wins against the best teams in the league. And that will make the difference between a low seed and the chance to compete for home-court advantage.
But the Magic won all four of these previous games without their only All-Star center and arguably their best player and offensive weapon in Nikola Vucevic. His return from a right lateral ankle sprain is still unclear, although he has reportedly started doing some light running.
The Magic have weathered the storm without a huge piece of the puzzle. Which should bode well for the confidence of the squad moving forward.
This streak is great for a young team missing their best player. Steve Clifford has to take notes on what went well and has to continue putting up victories to solidify their postseason hopes.