Paolo Banchero was bruising the Washington Wizards' defense throughout the entire first half.
There were no players who could stay in front of him and keep him out of the paint. And so he attacked at every opportunity. In transition he glided past defenders backtracking and afraid of the oncoming truck heading for htem. In the half-court he went to the paint and beat his man.
That is what Banchero has always done. The Magic are trying to maximize that ability from him and from Franz Wagner, who similarly punishes teams in the paint when they are not set to stop him.
The secret sauce is what all that gravity and attention can do. As the Magic try to increase their pace, the basic principles are still all about getting into the paint.
The play of the game was not one of Banchero's bruising drives. It was Banchero driving into the paint, seeing three players surround him and whipping a bounce pass to the corner for Wendell Carter and a three.
The Magic's vision for their offense is coming into focus during a 125-94 win over the Washington Wizards. And if it was not clear how this thing is supposed to work, assistant coach Joe Prunty spelled it out obviously for everyone to hear.
This is all about getting into the paint and using their defense to push the tempo against teams.
The Magic may have had 40 points in the paint at half, but Joe Prunty told FanDuel Sports Network Florida's Kendra Douglas that the Magic may have created 20 more points simply from the ball touching the paint.
That is the key to this team's success. If Orlando is going to improve as an offensive team and unlock that next level that everyone feels is necessary to get it to championship contender, it is this inside-out play and constant ball movement that can unlock the Magic's offense.
The Magic again put up a stellar offensive game -- a 116.8 offensive rating, 51.1 percent shooting, 12-for-36 shooting from three 33.3 percent, a season-high 13 steals and 10 blocks. The Magic made the fourth quarter irrelevant.
This game was truly about their defense -- a season-best 87.0 defensive rating -- that gave the offense its lifeblood. And it was about them living in the paint.
Life in the paint
Of course, it makes sense that the main goal for most teams is to get as many shots as possible near the basket. Especially an Orlando Magic team that has had a history of poor shooting. Everything for them has been about getting into the paint and putting pressure on defenses to stop their size as it attacks them.
The Magic were simply dominant in the paint and attacking the rim in Saturday's win.
They had 40 points in the paint in the first half and finished with 62, tying a season high. It was their sixth game in seven to have more than 50 points in the paint. Orlando is third in the league averaging 56.0 points in the paint per game.
It is clear how effective the Magic can be when they get paint touches.
The Magic were just 17th in the league in paint touches per game with 23.2 entering Saturday's games, according to data from Second Spectrum. That is something the team is aiming to improve. They boosted their offense simply by operating closer to the hoop.
The Washington Wizards put up very little resistance as Paolo Banchero (28 points) and Franz Wagner (25) powered their way to the basket. They went a combined 8 for 14 in the restricted area. Orlando as a whole went 21 for 34 in the restricted area.
That only accounts for the shots the team took into the paint. It does not account for how well the Magic were at getting to the paint and kicking out for open shots or moving the ball back around to get downhill again to the rim.
The Magic had everything working offensive in this game. They started to look more together and playing together on that end. The pieces started to come together by starting in the paint.
Pace comes from defense
Of course, a lot of it starts with the team's defense too.
Coach Jamahl Mosley has been less interested in talking about pace in terms of possessions -- the Magic are still ninth in that definition of pace and played Saturday's game at 107.5 possessions per 48 minutes. He is more interested in talking about pace as the speed at which the team executes its offense and how the defense adds to the offense.
Much of the talk of playing faster really started with the thought that the team needed to generate more offense from the turnovers and stops the defense creates. That was an area the team struggled at last year.
But this is what powered the Orlando Magic to a comfortable win Saturday night.
"I think we played really fast in the second quarter," Franz Wagner said after Saturday's game. "Me and P[aolo Banchero] got a couple of easy ones in transition and were able to get in the paint and make plays there. It starts on the defensive end with that group. It's really fun when you go on a run like that.
Indeed, the Magic have been better at scoring off turnovers -- 17 off 17 turnovers in Saturday's game and 17.0 per game this season as they have struggled to force turnovers at the same rate.
But, more importantly, the Magic have been better at getting out in transition. Orlando is seventh in the league with 18.7 fastbreak points per game and tallied 24 on 10-for-12 shooting on Saturday.
The Magic got both Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner going in transition. And the smaller Wizards had little way to slow them down when they were bearing down on the basket.
That can only happen if the team is getting stops.
"The pace is our defense getting stops to get out and run," Mosley said after Saturday's game. "As we can continue to get stops, we can get out and run. Half of the second and third quarter was our stops to get out and run. It was not just that we were trying to go at a breakneck speed, it was we were trying to get stops and convert offensively."
That was really what sparked the Magic's offensive outburst. And that is, of course, what will spark the Magic throughout the season.
Orlando is starting to put the pieces together for its team. That is the most positive sign of the last two games. And they are finding their formula to win and consistently put pressure offensively.