Terrence Ross looking to light the torch more often

Terrence Ross gets a fair amount of grief. He is one of the oldest players on a very young Orlando Magic team and as young people like to do, they like to remind him of his age.

So sometimes, Ross has to remind everyone he still has those young legs — he is just 31 years old, after all.

That came in the fourth quarter of Wednesday’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans. Ross cut back door and had the space to pull out a trick, going 360 before throwing down a one-handed jam.

Do not let anyone tell you Ross has old legs or cannot get up. This is a former Dunk Contest champion.

This was an exclamation point for Ross. He had one of his trademark quarters, scoring 12 of 14 points to help the Magic hold off the Pelicans for a 108-102 win. This was the Human Torch at his best, hitting tough shots on the move and draining 3-pointers (two of them in the quarter).

Terrence Ross has rarely lit the torch this season as he has struggled with his shooting. The Orlando Magic are hoping to light the torch more often as the season closes.

Orlando has not seen much of the Human Torch this year. It has been a decidedly down season for Ross. One that has been frustrating to watch and a bit of a drain on a young team lacking depth to sustain the inconsistencies that have at times characterized his career.

There have been some peaks in the process — a 22-point fourth quarter in an early-season win over the New York Knicks was among the major highlights as was a strong second-half showing in a win over the Detroit Pistons.

But it has been a lot of struggle.

Ross is scoring just 10.3 points per game, his worst since an injury-filled 2018 season. He is shooting a career-low 30.2-percent shooting from beyond the arc and a career-worst 47.0-percent effective field goal percentage.

This is not coming on fewer shots either — he is down from 5.7 3-point field goal attempts per game to 4.2 per game. His usage rate is down from 24.1-percent to 20.5-percent. His overall field goal attempts per game are down from 13.2 per game to 10.3 per game.

It is not like he is taking more shots or absorbing shots from others. Ross is not some chucker, although he is a shooter and that is his main role and skill for the team.

Yet, Ross is either average or below average in terms of 3-point field goal percentage from almost every place on the floor and kind of shot they took. The Magic have to find ways to get him better shots. But at the same time, Ross has to make shots.

That is part of the problem. The other part is getting him open looks.

This season, Ross is shooting 41.2-percent and a 50.3-percent effective field goal percentage on shots where the closest defender is more than four feet away. He averages 3.4 such shot attempts per game.

During the 2019 season, Ross shot 46.9-percent and a 56.5-percent effective field goal percentage on 6.6 such attempts per game. In 2020, Ross shot 39.5-percent and a 44.3-percent effective field goal percentage on 4.4 such attempts per game.

Even compared to a down season in 2020, Ross is getting fewer of these open attempts. And the Magic have to do a better job getting him those good looks because he can still hit them. He remains one of the more reliable shooters on the team.

The threat of that shooting remains important. Ross has become a tool to get others open a whole lot more than he has become a shooter himself.

Ross’ biggest skill at this point is the threat of his shooting. Defenses top block him and keep him from getting to the 3-point line.

His movement and work off the ball are what draw defensive attention. it is also the only area where Ross has remained effective this season — he scores +0.4 points more than expected off cuts per 75 possessions, according to Basketball-Index. He has a 60-percent effective field goal percentage off cuts, placing him in the 81st percentile in the league.

That is something defenses have to account for with Ross, even if he is not making shots. But that effect has been muted.

Orlando has a -11.9 net rating with Ross on the floor, the worst mark of any regular rotation player. The team has a 101.4 offensive rating with Ross on the floor. He certainly is not boosting the offense.

If there is a perception that Ross sucks the energy out of the offense, these numbers certainly support that.

But Ross also has not been in a ton of great lineups with good support for him. The most-used lineup with Ross is 65 minutes alongside Jalen Suggs, Gary Harris, Chuma Okeke and Moritz Wagner. That lineup gives the team plenty of shooting, but the lack of an experienced point guard inevitably leads to inconsistency.

That is where Ross has been caught this season. He has been caught between his own shooting struggles and poor lineups that put a lot more attention on him and make it harder for him to get open shots. It has been a tough spot for him.

Still, there are moments where Ross breaks through. And those breakthrough moments are sublime. They are everything Magic fans remember about him and love about him.

Ross still shows the spry legs and shows how he can make an impact. The Magic are just waiting for that torch to light. Hopefully, it is happening more often soon.