Orlando Magic’s defense has betrayed improved offensive play
By Omar Cabrera
The Orlando Magic have come out of the All-Star Break playing improved play on offense. But the defense has not followed suit.
The Orlando Magic knew they had to get off to a strong start after the All-Star Break to position themselves as the seventh seed in the playoff chase. This was the final sprint to the end of the season and a point where the team had to focus on the task at hand to achieve their goal.
The Magic came out on fire and seemed as if they were going to go on another run. However, no one could be sure as inconsistency plagued the Magic all season long. Nobody could quite get a feel for this team. They had not put all the pieces together.
The question became which Magic team was going to show up during this last stretch of the season.
Except for the loss to the Dallas Mavericks, the Orlando Magic came out on fire as their offense was finally playing well in a string of games that consisted of the Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks and Minnesota Timberwolves.
The team is averaging 117.1 points per game since the All-Star Break (ninth in the league) and 115.7 points per 100 possessions (fith in the league).
Players were having great games. Whether it be Aaron Gordon‘s triple-double against the Minnesota Timberwolves or Mo Bamba scoring 15 points to go with 10 rebounds and four blocks against the Atlanta Hawks or Terrence Ross dropping in eight 3-pointers against the Miami Heat. Someone was always stepping up and making plays when it mattered most.
With that being said, as their offense was playing well, their defense started to slip as they relied on their offense to win games.
The team has not gotten all the pieces together with the team’s offense only masking larger defensive issues.
Since the All-Star Break, the Magic have given up 118.6 points per 100 possessions, the second-worst mark in the league since the break. This is not the defense the Magic have prided themselves on. The team needed to return to that defensive intensity.
The 114-113 loss to the San Antonio Spurs was evidence that once the Orlando Magic’s offense slipped it would cost Orlando. Then they quickly found themselves down 19 in a game that they needed to play defense to have any chance to win. Although they did lose, this would be an opportunity to take this as a lesson and get back to playing high-level defense.
That was not the Orlando Magic that showed up against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.
The Magic tried to rely on an offense that was not working, and their defense was just as bad. Orlando lost 130-107 to Portland playing without All-Star Damian Lillard.
The Magic played with little to no effort that game and were delivered one of the worst losses of the season. Especially considering what is as stake at this point.
Orlando struggled offensively, defensively and played with little effort. This game was an embarrassment for a team that is fighting for playoff seeding.
The Magic found some measure of redemption in their next game against the Heat.
The Magic came out and played a hard-fought game. Although there is no room for moral victories, this was the type of game that the Magic have to play to win games. The defense played well except for guarding Duncan Robinson, who made seven threes in the first half.
But the effort had returned and the Magic played well enough to take down one of the Eastern Conference’s best teams on the road. Orlando will need a similar effort to slow down Minnesota on Friday.
The Magic are just half a game behind the Nets for the seventh spot. They know the level they have to play to obtain that spot to avoid the Milwaukee Bucks, but they have to do it.
They will be tested against the Timberwolves to see if their defense will start to show up consistently. With only 20 games remaining, the Magic has to make the final sprint to the finish.
dark. Next. Steve Clifford has struggled as much as his team
It has to be from combining this sudden offensive burst with a more focused defensive effort.