Orlando Magic return to intimidate and dominate on defense

The Orlando Magic have lost some of their spark defensively this season. Against the Chicago Bulls, the Magic got back to their basics and dominated.

By the end of the fourth quarter, the Orlando Magic’s defense had the Chicago Bulls shaking.

It might have been an unconscious response rather than actual fear. But with the way the team was scrambling and flying around, the Bulls had to be worried about the next wave coming to meet them.

Especially when that wave featured Aaron Gordon or Jonathan Isaac or Mohamed Bamba. The three centerpiece figures of the Magic’s all had their moment to turn the Bulls away in what turned out to be a 14-point fourth quarter. The kind of clinching quarter that cemented a win for the team, 103-95 at the Amway Center on Monday, snapping a three-game losing streak.

This was how the Magic were supposed to play all along. A style of play the team had lost touch with during the last few weeks as they started to descend the standings and lose their pace with the top teams in the Eastern Conference — although they never fell out of the playoff picture, holding onto that final playoff spot.

The best possession of the game was really an innocuous play that no highlight would capture.

With six minutes to play in the fourth quarter, Orlando chased off three 3-point shooters, scrambling to challenge shots and cut off drives before Jonathan Isaac closed things off with a closeout on Zach LaVine. LaVine ran out of space to shoot and in the indecision fumbled the ball off his leg out of bounds.

That possession was a series of scrambles and efforts and second efforts. It was a possession of the team displaying its versatility and ability to switch and recover. The Bulls were unable to sit still and get room to get a shot off with the Magic pushing to challenge every turn.

That is not everywhere the Magic put their mark defensively.

By a certain point in the game, the Bulls were driving always keeping an eye over their shoulder. Or searching out the team’s shot blockers.

Orlando recorded 13 blocks in the game, the first time they reached 10 blocks since the game at Milwaukee on Dec. 9. It was the most blocks they have had as a team all season. That has not necessarily correlated to wins, but this game felt different.

In one possession, Thaddeus Young went to the basket and got his shot blocked by Aaron Gordon from behind. He collected the rebound only to meet Mohamed Bamba at the basket for another block.

Gordon and Isaac each had three blocks. Bamba had four. It was real intimidation in the paint for the Magic. The Bulls had to move quickly because Orlando was constantly scrambling to contest.

That little beat is everything for a defense. That little bit of time — really a split second — knowing the defense is coming for you is the difference between taking the shot and getting the stop or forcing the next ball reversal.

Everything obviously starts with stopping your own man. That is still a part the team has to improve upon. But Orlando was scrambling and making stops and forcing the Bulls to go through their second and third progressions.

The Magic’s defensive intensity, focus and discipline were at a level more reminiscent to last year’s team. It certainly has been lacking lately.

Orlando’s defense has fallen off in recent weeks.

The Magic are 12th in the league in defensive rating at 107.2 points allowed per 100 possessions for the season. That is nowhere near where the Magic aim to be. They finished eighth in the league last year and rode that to the playoffs. They started this year as one of the elite defensive teams.

In the last 15 games, the Magic have given up 109.0 points per 100 possessions. That is a marked drop-off. And certainly, if Orlando finished 14th in the league in defensive rating, the team is not going to accomplish any of its goals.

The Magic seemed to recognize that coming off the road trip. After shaking off some of the rust of their road trip, they really started to buckle down defensively.

That was especially in the fourth quarter. The Bulls scored only 14 points in the final quarter (60.9 points per 100 possessions).

Orlando was disciplined throughout that quarter. It was not merely that stellar play with multiple closeouts — not to mention the Magic not turning the ball over to give the Bulls easy chances. The Magic scrambled to help each other.

Defense is notoriously difficult to measure. There is no perfect way to say this player closes out effectively or contests shots effectively. It is even harder to find metrics to assign true responsibility for defensive errors.

It is all these narrative stories to evaluate defense. Perhaps coach Steve Clifford describes it best. The league is really all about how players respond to success and adversity.

It is about how Gordon turned the ball over on one possession but then gave the extra effort to race to the other end and block Young’s dunk attempt to prevent scores. That second effort is everything defensively.

Throughout the road trip, Orlando sometimes looked a step slow, as if they were reacting a hair late. Their defensive timing and rhythm were off. Players were pointing at each other on occasions or digging in too deep, exposing shooters on the perimeter.

It was as if they were unsure of where to be or they were reacting late. It was not a team dictating defensive pressure.

Getting that second effort is everything for any strong defensive team. It takes attention to detail, strong communication and a sense of urgency. That was a sense of urgency the team has lacked throughout much of this season. Defense is not something anybody can go through the motions with.

At times it is better to make a mistake fast than to be in the right spot slow. The key to any defense is to recover anyway. It takes a team entirely on a string.

Orlando found that spirit and that defensive energy once again. At least for one night.

The Magic dominated the Bulls, intimidating in the lane and giving them little room to breathe on the perimeter.