Terrence Ross and the Human Torch are beginning to spark

Who knows exactly what happens to Terrence Ross when the embers begin to spark for him.

It is something every team in the league fears. Probably the one thing every team consistently fears about this young Orlando Magic team.

The Magic have a weapon coming off their bench — a nuclear reaction that could begin splitting and replicating at any moment, detonating any gameplans teams have at the moment.

Ross has been caught in the Magic’s second units, often the only option. Teams have put all the focus on him for that reason and put him in a vice grip. It has been difficult for him to bust out and break out. He has struggled to find his fit in a more free-flowing offense and without experienced teammates.

There still have been those moments when the torch lights and defenses are just praying for misses.

The Washington Wizards found themselves in that spot Sunday night.

Terrence Ross scored 20 consecutive points for the Orlando Magic on Sunday as his hot run of play has continued and boosted the Magic.

In the midst of a close, grind-it-out game, Ross started cooking. How it started no one could really say.

Was it the steal and layup at the end of the second quarter? Was it a pull-up jumper just after he checked in? Or a pass off a curl for Ross to hit a 3-pointer shortly thereafter?

Ross tied a Magic franchise record with 20 consecutive points for the team in the third quarter of the Magic’s 102-100 loss to the Wizards.

It was a dominant scoring performance from Ross, who finished with 32 points, that kept the Magic afloat as their offense hit a wall throughout the game. He singlehandedly in this case gave the Magic the lead for much of the third quarter.

This was Ross at his best. The ideal of his role. The “Human Torch” is indeed a flamethrower. And Sunday’s sudden burst was following a recent trend for Ross.

"“Terrence is special,” coach Jamahl Mosley said after Sunday’s loss. “He’s an elite, elite, elite shooter and scorer. He’s been great for this group. He’s been great for these guys. Just constantly communicating. Guys know when to find him. I thought it was a beauty to watch him go. And guys understanding where he was on the floor and trying to find him and creating so many difficult shots and so many problems for them. He’s been fantastic.”"

Ross is averaging 12.8 points per game while shooting a career-low 30.6-percent from beyond the arc and a 48.6-percent effective field goal percentage. He has spent most of the season with his worst scoring averages and field goal percentages since joining the Magic.

But Terrence Ross, like Gary Harris, has started to find his groove and turn the corner.

In Ross’ last 12 games, he is averaging 18.3 points per game while shooting 32.3-percent from beyond the arc and a 52.5-percent effective field goal percentage. He is also hitting 94.4-percent of his free throws on 4.5 attempts per game.

Since returning off the COVID health and safety protocols five games ago, he is averaging 22.2 points per game while shooting 38.5-percent from beyond the arc and a 54.9-percent effective field goal percentage.

If there is a reason the Magic are more competitive right now, it certainly helps that one and both of their veteran players have picked up their play considerably. Production and offensive threats still matter.

As the team gets healthier and back into its groove, the supporting play from Harris and Ross will certainly help the team get over that proverbial hump.

For Ross, finding his rhythm again was vital to the team’s development and growth. They need the support and attention he receives from the defense.

According to data from Basketball Index, Ross ranks in just the third percentile in terms of shot openness and his movement impact leads to him shooting 0.6 percentage points better than the league average, among the best marks in the entire league.

According to NBA.com’s tracking statistics, 63.2-percent of his shots come with the defender within four feet of him when he shoots. Ross does not get a ton of open shots in his journeys around the court.

But that has rarely stopped him. Ross got going by just finding his rhythm and finding space with the defense as they chased him around. Defenses know exactly what will happen when Ross comes around a screen and even their best adjustments are usually not enough to stop him.

Everyone knows that Ross is capable of games like he had Sunday when that groundswell gets building and he finds his rhythm. A lot of his points in Sunday’s came surprisingly off the dribble where he was able to set up his own shot and score while the defense waited for him to attack.

It takes something special like that to have a big game in the way Ross had one. He had every part of his game working.

And he made history.

"“I know it’s such a minuscule statistic, growing up T-Mac was one of my favorite players,” Ross said of equaling Tracy McGrady’s franchise mark. “To share something like that with him is special.”Ross has been a special player for the Magic through their playoff runs and even now. He remains a critical offensive threat for the Magic. And someone defenses still fear."

Orlando has waited for a while for him to break out consistently. As the team tries to get over the hump and win some games, Ross’ quick turnaround and scoring threat has put the team back in position to win games.

The Human Torch indeed lit up Sunday night. He has been lighting up now for some time.