Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley was asked before Saturday's game against the Miami Heat about the increase of three-point shots in the league. Mosley sidestepped the question but gave a profound response: You have to coach the team you have.
To do that you have to know who your team is.
Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra had something to add to that too. He said what Mosley and the Magic have built in the last three years was an identity that centered on tough defense. And that was something that would last even through the injuries the team was facing.
That is how their opponent perceived this team. And the Magic are still working to cement this identity and have come a long way in three short years.
That notion is ringing in everyone's head as the Magic lose bodies and field a different team than what they imagined.
How could anyone plan or prepare to play the team that Orlando ended up using for the majority of Saturday's 121-114 victory over the Heat? How could you know who this team is?
No one could. But you have to find a way.
Down by 25 points? Struggling to shoot? Missing your two All-Stars? Losing a starter to a quick trigger technical foul ejection? Losing your best bench player to a potentially devastating knee injury?
The Magic always say it is next man up. Someone is ready to step in and contribute. This team simply believes. This team knows exactly who they are. They have an identity. And it does not matter who is in or out, they play that way.
"That's something I haven't seen," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Saturday's comeback win. "The ability to stay with it despite all of the circumstances that started in the beginning of the game. Our guys stayed with the amount of grit, determination and focus. It's just the belief system of this group. Next man up. By committee. There's no better way to show it than what that locker room and each guy did from the beginning of the game."
A deep hole, a thrilling comeback
There was a lot that put the Orlando Magic in a deep hole. Frustration with the officials dominated the conversation throughout the second quarter with the Magic picking up four technical fouls in that period alone, including two quick ones that sent Wendell Carter to the locker room.
The most devastating emotional toll came when Moe Wagner went down with a left knee injury that required teammates to help him leave the floor. It was understandable that the Magic lost their focus and emotions as one of their brothers left the game.
Still, there was a game to play. And Jamahl Mosley kept his team focused on finding ways to push Miami's resolve. Even after they trailed by as much as 25 points.
The team said repeatedly their goal was to get the deficit to 12. When they finally did in the third quarter, the Heat pushed it back out to 22.
Orlando kept coming though. The Magic got the deficit down to 12 again and never looked back. This time they got over the hump.
Orlando seemed to know that if the team pushed Miami and made the team sweat, the comeback was on. This is a Magic team that sought out pressure.
Orlando knows its whole identity starts on defense. That is required when you give up only eight points in the fourth quarter and come back from 25 points, tying the largest comeback in franchise history. It is essential to who this team is.
The Heat got caught on their heels as they got tighter as the game went on. They made only 2 of 18 shots in the final quarter as the Magic started to swarm and contest on their way to a 37-8 final frame. Miami turned it over five times for nine points in the final quarter.
Orlando needed only to get a little bit of daylight to try to storm back. With the Magic's defense, they can be absolutely devastating. This was reminiscent of the frenetic energy and pace they played with to shut down the Heat in the season opener.
That speaks to the team's resolve and determination. This has always been a confident group and one that plays to the final buzzer. They found that groove and that defense and never looked back to devastating effect.
"When the pressure is on, we're going to show up regardless because we know what we bring to the table," Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said after Saturday's win. "We have enough in this locker room to compete with anybody. No matter how many bodies we have down. We still have enough. There's toughness, never giving up and their unrelenting effort on both sides of the ball."
By committee for the win
So many players stepped up because they had to. The Orlando Magic may have had to search for the right rotations, but they found players who would step in. And then they just outworked their opponent. That is who the Magic are.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope provided stability with 24 points, hitting a jumper with 2:43 to play to give the Magic the lead for the first time in the fourth quarter.
Cole Anthony controlled everything with 35 points off the bench, including 13 in the fourth quarter. He carried the team back into the game with his shot-making. He hit every decisive bucket or added one of his nine assists to find players to get the team over the top.
Trevelin Queen played his first meaningful minutes on his two-way deal to play excellent defense on Tyler Herro and fearlessly attack the basket and finish over shot blockers. He had a huge block late to add insult to injury and ice the game.
Goga Bitadze cleaned up too. Getting the basket that put the game away and gave the Magic the lead for good on his way to 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Everyone played a part. Exactly as the Magic designed and built this team.
The rest of the league has come to know how difficult this Magic team is to play. They keep sending waves of energy at you and scramble and defend so effectively. Teams become sped up and trapped in its vice.
All the team needs is that window to get through. The Magic are a team you have to put away.
"It shows the proof of it when you keep fighting, you keep going, you stay determined and stay together and celebrate each other and play the game with a level of joy and toughness and passion, it goes a long way," Mosley said after Saturday's win. "The last piece of it is it goes into the belief system. When our coaches tell them we're ok, you've got to keep fighting, they believe it because they've seen it happen. Now this is even more proof of what you can do in situations when you have your backs against the wall."
That energy and that intensity is what defines the team. They never stopped believing in themselves and each other. That is how they were able to make this kind of a comeback and score this kind of a victory.
It was by any means necessary, pushing aside frustration and devastating emotional energy from the first half. Orlando played until the whistle sounded.
Orlando did not merely just win. It got confirmation that the team has built a culture and an identity that can last and can win.
The Magic got pushed and tested. They saw exactly who they are and what defines them. It is something more than any individual player. It is something they all believe in.
They again showed who they are and that it is part of their very being.