Orlando Magic Playbook: How the Orlando Magic fixed their defense

The Orlando Magic are built to be a defensive team.

That was the message they gave and the stat nugget they held onto in the offseason — top 10 in defense after last year’s all-star break. And the kind of players they drafted — from Jonathan Isaac to Mo Bamba to Chuma Okeke to Jalen Suggs.

The Magic seemed committed to the belief that they can teach shooting and build offense off a defensive foundation. Ultimately it would be defense that would carry them higher and higher as they developed and grew.

That has largely not been the story of the year so far.

The Magic have struggled defensively overrall ranking 22nd in the league at 113.7 points allowed per 100 possessions. They have struggled a ton with turnovers and giving up transition points — 28th in turnover rate at 16.2 percent and 26th in opponent points off turnovers at 19.4 points per game. But the eye test shows these numbers are part of larger problems defensively.

That was the first quarter of the season. Things have changed dramatically now as the Magic have won eight of their past nine games. The team is starting to lock in defensively at a higher level.

This is the defense the Magic always envisioned.

The Orlando Magic have turned their season around and shown tremendous growth. This is the kind of defense they imagined they would always play and it is a big reason for their turnaround.

In the past 10 games, the Magic rank seventh in the league with a 109.0 defensive rating. They have a turnover rate of 14.7 percent (15th in the league in the last 10 games).

This is a major turn and at the heart of the Magic’s success. They are finally becoming the defensive team they imagined they would be.

"“I feel like that’s been the reason why we have been winning,” Bol Bol said after the team’s shootaround on Dec. 14 before the game against the Atlanta Hawks. “Our defense has gone up a tremendous notch. We’ve all been on the same page and locking in defensively. And that’s been leading to our easy offense.“I feel like we have all been more focused and paying attention to the gameplan and all being on the same page and locked in. That has helped us be better defensively for the last couple of games.”"

That has certainly carried over in the last week. And that point about the team’s communication is certainly a big point for the team.

Earlier in the year, Orlando was struggling with its defensive communication, scuttling the team’s switching schemes and attempts to run 3-2 and 2-3 zone defenses to use its length and size. The team struggled too to keep its man in front of them, giving up paint penetration and putting the team in scramble mode.

It has sometimes looked like Orlando is not clear what it wants to build defensively.

The injuries and inconsistent rotations played a role in this. Lots of players were suddenly thrown into different defensive roles and they would change regularly as the roster shifted.

But there is much more certainty about what the team is trying to do now. And players are much more locked into their responsibilities.

Bol is a great place to start with this:

In this possession from the Magic’s win over the Hawks, the Magic do a good job in their base defensive man-to-man set.

Paolo Banchero executes a switch with Markelle Fultz to help to navigate this three-man action. That cuts off Trae Young’s pull-up shot and forces him to reset the offense. This gives the Magic a chance to load up their defensive rotations.

Moe Wagner though is caught guarding De’Andre Hunter thus taking him out of the paint. He tries to stay on the nail (at the free throw line) to provide help, but he is not going to be able to do much if Young is able to get by his man.

This is where Bol has especially struggled. In pick and rolls, Bol is often the low man — the help behind the center defending the pick and roll. He is the last line of defense at the rim. And he is often late in leaving his man to challenge shots.

Coaches will always tell defenders to be early with their help — that will at least deter anyone from challenging the paint and slow down those drives. Players can always scramble back.

Bol is early in this case. And this is a big change for the Magic throughout this win streak. Everyone is on the same page here from the time Banchero switches to understanding that Wagner is not able to be in the paint.

As Banchero forces Young toward the baseline, Bol is already there in the paint waiting for him. Everyone is covered and Young has no choice but to take the shot which Bol easily swats away.

This is a big difference for the Magic during this win streak. Their low-man help is stronger as they have done a better job defending the paint — 17th overall in opponent points in the paint at 49.2 per game compared to fifth in the last 10 games at 44.8 per game.

That can be seen in plenty of other areas throughout the win streak too:

In this play from the Magic’s second game against the Celtics, Mo Bamba is set up in drop coverage but it is really hiding a switch. Franz Wagner is late to get around the screen, but this is clearly communicated and Mo Bamba is able to step up and set up a sharp angle to deny Malcolm Brogdon a drive at the basket.

The defense behind Bamba is set up perfectly. The other three players, are in the paint to show their bodies and lock up driving and passing lanes. It is not as dramatic as having Bol at the basket, but everyone is early in their positions. It gives the offense something to think about.

That moment is all they need.

Malcolm Brogdon drives along the baseline and Terrence Ross is there to cut him off. Brogdon then attempts a difficult pass that Orlando is in the perfect position to intercept.

This is what defensive communication looks like. And this is what has been more on point throughout this win streak.

"“I do think it is a focus thing,” Moe Wagner said after shootaround on Dec. 14. “I think realizing that is one of our staples and seeing that that works I think is a process. We as players realize that needs to be a staple of ours. We are more locked in with a higher urgency to execute that. As a player, it’s very relieving that the work translates into wins.”"

The Magic have started to slip some in recent games. But even there they are still locking in defensively for long enough to zoom ahead.

In Wednesday’s win over the Houston Rockets, it took the team switching to a zone defense to change things up. That switch had the effect of simplifying the team’s responsibilities and communication. It got everyone on the same page to look like the swarming defense that you have seen in the clips above.

How the team is able to lock into place defensively and put together sustained stretches of this strong defense is helping them win games. Every player credited the team’s defense for sparking the run that won them Friday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs.

This is another play where the team plays its switching scheme well.

Keldon Johnson gets a dribble handoff from Zach Collins. Franz Wagner gets gobbled up in the screen, but he is looking for the switch. Moe Wagner is in the perfect position to cut off Johnson. All the help defenders are in a good spot to close off any passing lanes.

Johnson is unsure of what to do and double dribbles to turn the ball over. It all starts with that strong defense at the point of attack. And this was the solid defensive play the Magic have had throughout this win streak.

To play good defense it takes strong communication at the point of attack. It takes the help rotation being position to swoop into action whether it is moving to stop dribble penetration.

Things have become a lot simpler for this team and the team’s rotations are clicking in a major way.

"“We talk about it a ton if guys are thinking too much, their feet are slow,” coach Jamahl Mosley said after practice Dec. 13. “If we can keep these guys and help them understand here is your job to do in this particular situation just go out and do it. You don’t have to overthink it. Not just offensively, but defensively as well to keep it simple for these guys.”"

If you are looking for a shift in the Magic’s mentality during this win streak it is how the team has been tied together in these moments — across both starting and bench groups. Everyone is more dialed in and effective.

And that is what has to continue if the Magic are going to cement this winning streak.