The Orlando Magic know the process the team needs to find success: Getting the ball into the paint, kicking it back out, and cycling it into the paint and out and around the horn for a good shot has been a pretty solid formula when they execute it. They know defensively that if they can rebound, their defense will hold itself steady.
There is a good team in there. For the 3-4 minutes at a time that the team executes everything, they feel they can be elite.
Their numbers and record do not show that yet. The team has not been that way for long enough to get the wins.
The Magic are still busy trying to put all the pieces together. They know that it remains a process for this group. One they are working on as they prepare for a four-game West Coast trip.
This team is still getting its basics down.
"I think the moral victory for me is the accountability factor," Wendell Carter said after practice Wednesday. "From the first man to the last man, there has been an accountability factor. The coaches are calling out everyone when they aren't doing what they are supposed to be doing. It's a very healthy environment to continue to grow. That's what you need on a winning team. I feel like if we continue doing that and guys continue receiving information, we'll ascend for sure."
Carter said even the coaches call out each other and make sure they are on task. Everyone is seemingly trying to figure out the way forward for this team.
Orlando is still trying to build its basic principles as the team embarks on this road trip. They are still trying to make it a habit.
The path behind
Things have not looked great for the Orlando Magic in the first seven games.
The team is 2-5, not getting off to the start they had hoped for even allowing for adjusting to a new coaching staff and the injuries the team has faced.
Through seven games, the Magic have a 108.0 offensive rating (23rd in the league) and 116.2 defensive rating (25th in the league). That is the profile for a team that will sink to the bottom of the standings, not one knocking on the door.
But this Magic team feels like it is closer to figuring itself out. The team feels like it is not far from the team it hopes to be.
"The biggest thing for us is building on what we have done well and correcting the mistakes that we have made," coach Sean Sweeney said after practice Wednesday. "Both coaches and players. I think we have done a good job of some initial building blocks and fundamentals. But now we have to continue getting better at it."
There are obviously a lot of things to clean up.
The good moments might be very encouraging. But the bad moments have been very frustrating.
The team lamented a lack of intensity down the stretch in the pair of home losses this weekend to the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards. They went away from their principles in those moments. They are still trying to get them back.
"I think the last couple of games we haven't been doing [competing] at a high level as a group," Jase Richardson said after practice Wednesday. "We all kind of feel that. We all have to get back to competing at a high level offensively and defensively and get back to what we do best."
Sweeney said the team is doing a good job getting assists and setting up its offense -- the team is second in the league in assist percentage. He thinks the intent has been good, but the team must improve its spacing and decision-making.
The Magic are still putting the pieces together on this team. Now they must do it on the road and look ahead.
The road ahead
Part of the Orlando Magic's early season story is cetainly about the difficulty of their schedule.
Of the six teams the Orlando Magic have faced this season, four are in the top 10 in defensive rating (the Boston Celtics are 11th) and three are in the top 10 in offensive rating. Only the New York Knicks, one of the Orlando Magic's two wins, are currently under .500.
The Magic will need to beat these teams to get where they want to go. But facing a difficult schedule while implementing a new offensive system and dealing with injuries to two starters is a big road block.
It is one of the reasons why the Magic are not overly concerned about where they are, and seem confident they will right the ship soon.
"Of course, you want to get in that winning column a little bit more, but doing it the right way, sticking to our process for all 48 minutes of a game," Wendell Carter said after practice Wednesday. "We have yet to put that together even in some of our wins. The moment we can get that 48 minutes together, where we are doing everything we are supposed to do on the court, that's when we will start to ascend to the team we know we can be."
The goal is to play their best later in the season. The Magic still see all of that coming together despite the early season adversity.
This road trip will prove to be a big opportunity.
On this West Coast road trip, the Magic will face three teams that have struggled with just one win entering Wednesday's busy calendar.
Of the next five games, the Orlando Magic face only one team that has a winning record (the 5-3 Golden State Warriors on Saturday). All five of the team's next five opponents have a defensive rating in the bottom 10 in the league and three with an offensive rating in the bottom 10 in the league.
The Magic are not in a position to check off victories with their statistical profile. But even on the road, this is a chance to get things right.
"It's human nature: When you feel like you are doing everything right and not winning, it's frustrating. We haven't been doing everything right for all 48. You take everything with a grain of salt, but you want to continue to grow. We just want to be a better team. Come December [or] January, we aren't waiting until then to be in our tip-top shape. But things take time, and I think we will be just fine."
The first step in getting there is to pick up some wins on this road trip. It is to put all of the team's principles and ideas into action.
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