Five bright spots for the Orlando Magic in the 2022 season

The Orlando Magic have had a tough start to the NBA season.

The Magic have faced tough circumstances from injuries to players being in the COVID-19 protocols. But the fact of the matter is Orlando sits near the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 7-26 record.

This was somewhat expected. Players have accepted that wins are going to be hard to come by and that this is a season of growth and development.

The Orlando Magic have, as expected, sunk to the bottom of the standings. Still, there are plenty of bright spots the team can grow from.

There have been a few starts and stops on that journey. And the team still waits to begin its goal of integrating players coming off long-term injuries. There is still a larger story to tell and more development to go in the second half of the season.

But even though the Magic have struggled to string wins together, Orlando has still found bright spots and that gives assurance the future is bright.

As the Magic hit a little break for the Christmas holiday, it is important to take stock of some of the progress that has been made.

Cole Anthony rewrites his narrative

Cole Anthony has rewritten the narrative the majority of people were putting on him since his time at North Carolina ended. From the sixth man that most were expecting when he entered the NBA and this season, Anthony has put himself in the position to be talked about in All-Star conversations.

Anthony is averaging 20.0 points per game with 6.0 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game. Those are certainly All-Star numbers and the Magic have struggled to function when he is off the court for the most part.

While Anthony is playing well statistically, his impact goes beyond the stat sheet.

On the court, Anthony can get anywhere he pleases and can create for himself and his teammates. The numbers back this up as Anthony leads the team with a -2.5 on-court net rating, a decent mark for a team with only seven wins. The Magic score 108.2 points per 100 possessions with Anthony on the court compared to 95.9 points per 100 possessions when he is off the court.

Anthony has also been a strong player in the clutch.

He ranks 10th in the NBA in points per game in the clutch, which is a telling point that Anthony continues to deliver even when the game is on the line. Anthony is quietly checking off the boxes that go with being a star in this league.

Building a team that will eventually compete for a championship needs to find its star. There is no way to know if anyone currently on the Magic will become that star.

But Anthony has shown the potential of being the man. And the only conclusion that can be drawn from Antony thus far is that we do not know his ceiling.

He has certainly blown past any ideas about it we had before.