One thing always seems to stand out about Desmond Bane in the locker room after games.
Bane is a go-to for media because he is typically calm and thoughtful, win or lose. He is intense and sees the best version of this team, but he never panicked or gave into despair when the team was at its lowest. But he was still pointed to ask, "What identity?" whenever a question assumed what this team was based on what it was.
Bane is one of the few key players who does not have that shared history as the team built itself up from scratch. He is catching up to the team's identity and history.
He often asks teammates about their history with a certain opponent or how thins felt last year. Bane is trying to learn how to be the best leader for this Magic team as one of the few players with deep playoff experience.
Bane has been working to ingratiate himself with his new team all year. It started with him deferring and trying to fit in as he found his place with his new team early in the year. It has come now to a player who is defining everything that is hopeful about this eam.
It is safe to say he has found his place. And that is what the third quarter of his season was about.
Bane has remained a good locker room presence and someone who believes deeply in this team as he tries to catch up on their history. Now he has started to put those pieces together on the court in stunning and exciting ways.
Bane is the MVP of the third quarter of the season for all of that. Bane has officially become an essential part of the Orlando Magic.
"I think early on you kind of want to not step on toes and kind of fit in instead of put your stamp on things," Bane said in the locker room after the win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. "As you get more and more comfotable, build relationships, open up and be your own thinking self. Everything takes time. But I love this team, this organization and this city. Glad I'm here."
Bane said there is no more thinking. He is going out there and playing his game as they continue to trend in the right direction, as Bane likes to say.
Orlando is seeing more often how special Bane can be and how he can transform their team.
He has delivered in every way imaginable on the court for much of this season now. Those early struggles are long forgotten.
Bane was on an absolute heater
Quite simply, Desmond Bane spent the last 20 games not missing shots and being an absolute dynamo on offense.
Bane averaged 23.0 points per game while shooting 56.1 percent from the floor, 47.2 percent from three and 90.2 percent from the foul line. He took 6.0 3-point attempts per game, far closer to the 3-point shooting volume the Magic imagined when he arrived.
The Magic, so starved for outside shooting, had never really seen a player get this hot at this volume too often.
If he is not hitting from the outside, Bane has become a reliable and solid attacker too. He has made 61.0 percent of his shots within five feet, taking 5.5 attempts per game within five feet. In the third quarter of the season, he shot 67.7 percent on 4.4 attempts per game.
Bane has a solid mid-range game too. When he cannot get 3-point attempts or is chased off the line, he is still a major threat to sore.
Orlando has rode him throughout the season to supplement the team's scoring. In the third quarter of the season he had six 30-point games.
With Franz Wagner out, Desmond Bane has stepped in to anchor lineups and carry the team offensively. He has been the Magic's most consistent player all season.
A veteran leader
In a season that has featured a lot of frustration and disappointment, Bane shines as a steady hand and veteran leader who always bounces back and has been pretty consistent. The Magic are not sitting in sixth and in the fight to climb to fifth with a late surge without the work Bane did in the middle of the season.
He found his shot earlier in the season, and he has been the most consistent and perhaps best player for the Magic all season.
The third quarter of the season only highlighted how good Bane has been.
But that still only scratches the surface of his value to this team.
The Magic went through all of these injuries last year and sat after the third quarter of the season at 29-33. The Magic are five games better at game 62 this year than they were last year. And that is with the seemingly constant hand-wringing about Paolo Banchero's play.
Bane is one of the big reasons the team has surpassed last year's frustrations. This year's frustrations are all about comparisons to their expectations.
But that is also what stands out about Bane. Bane is not satisfied with the team being better than last year, even if he wants to understand the team's history and share in that.
He still wants to make his own. And the Magic have never lost sight of their goals and their belief in what this team is capable of.
Like with Bane's season, maybe it has not happened as fast as everyone would have hoped. Maybe there will be more doubts entering next season -- or some other changes the team has to consider.
But Bane is a big reason the Magic still have a chance for some measure of success this season. He is a big reason why the Magic are set to have a better record this season and a better chance in the Playoffs.
Bane not only learned how to fit in with his new team. He found a way to cement himself as vital to the team. He has been a true difference maker all season long.