Orlando Magic are antsy to get Desmond Bane over his early-season frustrations

Desmond Bane was clearly frustrated at the end of Tuesday's game against the Atlanta Hawks.

After missing a three, he was late tracking Onyeka Okongwu releasing behind him. All he could do as Jalen Johnson's Hail Mary pass sailed over his head was to turn and foul. He grabbed Okonwu's arm and pulled him down, spiking the basketball near his head as it bounced up toward him.

Inadvertent or not, Bane was charged with both a flagrant foul and technical foul. It was clear that frustration over a slow start to the season had overtaken him.

The Magic were still figuring out the best way to use Bane. And everyone is antsy to see him take that next step.

There are just precious few answers right now as the team figures it out.

A slow and frustrating start

It has undoubtedly frustrated everyone that the Orlando Magic are not getting Desmond Bane involved more. He has been unable to deliver on the promise. It has everyone questioning everything about the team.

And a 4-6 start does not help matters.

If the team were winning, the pressure might not be as high. There would be time to continue to explore the space and figure things out.

But the team's struggles to find its footing have only added to the frustration. The team has found it is not so easy to take this leap, even with improved talent. Everyone is feeling the pressure.

The angst came out in that moment against the Atlanta Hawks. And everyone took notice.

"I can already tell he's already frustrated over there," Onyeka Okongwu said when asked about the incident last Thursday. "He's not having the best year. I would be frustrated too if I was over there, if he's watching, respectfully, Paolo and Franz taking all the shots. Nothing personal."

There may be something to that in that the way the Magic run their offense is different from a lot of teams around the league. Bane is still finding his place with the team.

Bane is struggling to find his shot. All of his offensive numbers are at a low since his rookie year.

He is averaging 14.2 points per game and shooting 29.3 percent on 4.1 3-point attempts per game.

He has had some really big moments -- his 23 points and three 3-pointers in the opener against the Miami Heat and 22 points and seven assists in Friday's win over the Boston Celtics show the contributions he can make.

But that game Friday was an outlier. It broke a string of three straight games with fewer than 10 points.

He scored only nine points with six assists on Sunday against the Celtics. He took only one 3-pointer, the first time he took fewer than one 3-pointer since his rookie season in 2021.

That feels like a blatant misuse of a key weapon. It only adds to the frustration.

Redistributing touches

Everyone expected all three of the Orlando Magic's key players to have fewer touches and usage as they try to spread the ball around.

But it was all meant to take advantage of Desmond Bane's shooting. Bane was supposed to soak up those touches and shots.

Bane has struggled to find his shots. He had a 30.3 percent usage rate in the opening game against the Miami Heat. He has not cleared 23.1 percent in any game since then. That is not quite acting like a star.

According to data from Second Spectrum, Bane averages 51.3 touches per game. That is down from 68.4 per game last year. Again this is expected -- Paolo Banchero is down from 77.2 per game to 71.4 and Franz Wagner is down from 67.0 per game to 59.2. Everything is still flowing through Banchero and Wagner.

Clearly Bane has made the biggest sacrifice. And it has been a sacrifice to his shooting.

Orlando needs to make it more of a point to get Bane his shots or his looks from three. Even if he is not getting up shots, putting him in shooting positions shifts the defense. He is a willing passer and driver to take advantage of how the defense shifts around him.

"It's hard when you are a sniper and hugged up on it," Jalen Suggs said after Sunday's loss. "Just continue to find drive and kicks. Look for those spray outs. Part of it is consciously trying to get guys looks. In the flow of the game, you might have one or force a drive just because you know the next man has to stop you and that's where Ban can get his threes. We want to get Bane the ball, we want to get him shots. We know he's a knockdown shooter. Got to execute better for him."

So far that has not happened. Everyone wants to know why.

It could be as simple as better ball movement and putting Bane in spots to get the ball in rotation -- or using him as a screener in pick and rolls, especially with Banchero to pop out to the three-point line.

Orlando's worst offensive moments come because Banchero and Wagner are isolating or on the ball too much, rather than moving it quickly to the next man -- a place where Bane could certainly benefit.

As Andrew Schlect and Alex Speers discussed on The Athletic NBA Show, the question for the Magic is whether Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner can make others better. That is a test they failed last year with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and are failing now with Desmond Bane.

That includes integrating Bane into the fold and keeping him involved. It is the big question for the Magic in the early part of the season.

The Magic need to make it a point to find him, plain and simple.

"Throw him the ball when he's open," Banchero said after Sunday's loss. "I think we can all do a better job of helping him get shots."

The Magic should make it a point to find Bane his shots. That should only benefit the entire team because of the threat of his shooting and how that attention will open up space for others.

Orlando's offense is improved, and the fact that Bane can playmake when teams chase him off the line is a key reason why. He has been worth the price for that alone -- or been an upgrade over Caldwell-Pope's disappointing shooting season.

But the next step is clearly to unlock Bane more. That should help the Magic get even better. It is something Orlando has to be focused on doing.