Moral victories are not a staple of the NBA playoffs. Not when you have been there before, like this exact version of the Orlando Magic. And certainly not when you entered the regular season with higher aspirations than making the play-in tournament, like this exact version of the Magic also did.
Yet, Orlando’s five-game exit at the hands of the reigning champion Boston Celtics was in many ways proof of concept. It reinforced what the roster needs most, while reiterating its defensive strengths.
What’s more, the Celtics themselves took notice. Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard called these Magic “probably the best team we’ve seen at guarding the ball,” and a “good challenge.”
Now, these sentiments and $267 will buy you a three-day Disney World pass. (Park-hopper option not included.) The Magic still lost. And they lost Game 5 badly. But Pritchard’s slant is not a unique one. The timing of it is just more important, because it is a reminder that Orlando is close—not yet title contenders, but not so far away that it must mortgage desperate amounts of the future in a blockbuster trade.
Orlando already has a championship-level defense
Any number of metrics can be used to accentuate the unflappable success of the Magic’s defense. One stands out above all else in the aftermath of the first round.
Orlando limited Boston to 34.8 three-point attempts and 13.0 long-range makes per 100 possessions. That is jaw-droppingly lower than the 49.6 attempts and 18.3 makes, respectively, the Celtics averaged during the regular season.
Meanwhile, just 15.4 percent of Boston’s jumpers went unguarded for the series. That is a massive dip from the 26.2 percent uncontested rate they chiseled out in the regular season.
The Magic’s blend of physicality, floor navigation, and overall versatility is largely unprecedented, matched only by the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder. That their identity remained intact while enduring so many key absences makes the end product all the more impressive.
The Thunder, New Orleans Pelicans, Philadelphia 76ers, and Dallas Mavericks were the only squads to lose more value to injury this past year, according to BBall Index. Jalen Suggs is the Magic’s best defender, and among those who missed extensive time. A quad injury that required surgery has sidelined him since early January. Orlando finished second overall in points allowed per 100 possessions anyway, and that same short-handed defense, by and large, gave the reigning champs all they could handle. That speaks volumes.
The Magic have a clear path forward
Everything the Magic do on defense matters only so much while their offense remains clunky and unproductive. They have not ranked better than 17th in points scored per 100 possessions since 2011-12.
Figuring out the path forward must be viewed through the lens of Paolo Banchero, Orlando’s best and most important player. The Magic need someone who beefs up their perimeter shot-creation and -making and table-setting for others, but who won’t infringe upon Banchero’s on-ball reps and best overall skills. The task can seem daunting at first consideration. It’s not.
According to BBall Index, Banchero’s teammates ranked in the 30 percentile or lower this season in half-court shot creation (30th percentile), half-court shot-making (10th percentile), off-ball gravity (14th percentile), overall three-point shot-making (1st percentile), and catch-and-shoot three-point efficiency (0th percentile). Orlando is working off such a low baseline that even semi-significant improvement goes a long way.
Any meaningful change will likely need to happen via trade. The Magic will be a luxury-tax team if they retain everyone at their current price points, and aren’t bagging a game-changer using any version of the mid-level exception. That’s fine. They have the assets—including all of their own firsts moving forward, as well as the Denver Nuggets’ 2025 selection—to nail down a difference-making move.
Unlike last offseason, the front office just needs to identify the right player, and actually do something about it. It could be a star, or a fringe star, or even someone a little worse. So long as that player, whoever he is, nudges the offense in a more dynamic and efficient direction, the Magic will be sitting pretty—no longer close, but actually there.
Dan Favale is a Senior NBA Contributor for FanSided and National NBA Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.