The Orlando Magic have been emphasizing their pace all preseason and training camp long.
The team could not be stuck in the mud any longer. The team needed a refreshed approach to its offense.
Pace became the catch-all answer for the Magic's offense. The emphasis was especially on the team creating offense from its defense. There was an emphasis on getting the ball upcourt sooner and into the offense faster, giving the team more time to run through its options and sets.
It has not been a smooth ride. And it took a key revelation for the Magic to make the most of this pace.
The Magic's offense does not work without its defense. As much as the team wanted to improve its offense, the biggest key to turn is the defense turning around.
"I just feel like we have more direction overall," Anthony Black said after shootaround Tuesday. "We're leaning into our defense and letting our offense figure itself out. Our mentality is better. We're just playing better."
More than anything, that is what has changed.
The Orlando Magic demolished the Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards, as a team with the Magic's ambition should. The Magic used their defense to lead the way.
That might be the biggest light bulb that has gone off for this team.
A new pace for the Magic
The Orlando Magic needed to address their pace as part of any change to their offense. That was vital to the team.
Orlando was last in the league last year in possessions per 48 minutes, one way to define "pace." But it was a sign of how slow the Magic operated and one of the many things the team needed to fix.
This season has seen a complete reversal.
The Magic are a fast-paced team -- fifth in the league at 103.3 possessions per 48 minutes. They are getting out in transition a lot more -- 1.25 points per possession on 23.0 transition possessions per game this year compared to 1.11 points per possession on 17.9 transition possessions per game last year, according to data from Synergy.
The Magic this year are sixth in offensive efficiency in transition and 10th in transition possessions. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner have been dominant there too. Banchero is 10th in the league in points per possession in transition at 1.57 (including his assists). Wagner is 16th at 1.70 points per possession in transition.
The Magic are a different offensive team just on this alone, even as they still seek improvement in the half-court. Orlando is hoping to get more transition opportunities and fast-break points.
Playing faster still takes some work. The Magic are turning the ball a ton right now, a product of playing too fast or trying to force transition when it is not there. But the team is starting to get the right mindset to make this work.
"I wouldn't say it's easy. But I think it's been working well," Goga Bitadze said after shootaround Tuesday. "I've just got to keep doing it. i think conditioning-wise I'm ready to do it. I think the mentality sometimes you forget. But the guards keep pushing the pace. I have no choice but to run."
Orlando still has work to do to get these thought processes down. Orlando's half-court offense is still a bit of a slog. The shooting is improved -- 20th in the league at 33.5 percent! -- but nowhere near where it needs to be.
The Magic still have not unlocked Desmond Bane to his full potential.
Transition possessions have helped fill these gaps. But the team has struggled because it is running to run and not using the running as a tool to create mismatches.
It all comes back to the team's identity. The one they needed to rediscover this season.
Defense is the difference
The Orlando Magic are still feeling their way through this offense. They are still trying to make these changes stick.
More than anything, they are still trying to catch up too.
The whole league is playing fast. What can make the Magic successful at this pace then is meant to be their strength -- their defense.
And this is the revelation that has turned things on this road trip.
Orlando's defense was inconsistent through the first three games. Then the Magic turned in the two worst defensive games from this team in the last four seasons against the Philadelphia 76ers and Detroit Pistons. That was despite Orlando posting offensive ratings of 126.5 and 114.9. Those are two of the best offensive games early in the season.
The Magic needed to learn that their pace does not work without getting stops. Their defense is what fuels their pace.
If that is the biggest thing the Magic have learned on this five-game trip, it will be the most valuable thing. Orlando needs to play its game.
"We've just got to do what we do," Goga Bitadze said after shootaround Tuesday. "It's always about us. We can beat anybody if we play how we should be playing. We've just got to be us, and we'll get the win."
That will be the test in Tuesday's game against a solid defensive team in the Atlanta Hawks.
The Magic found themselves in their blowout wins in the last two games. Orlando feasted on teams expected to be at the bottom of the standings. Now the Magic need to test themselves against more quality competition.
They need to ensure they can lean on their defense to power their offense and pace. That is the biggest lesson of the last week and what the Magic are constantly trying to apply now. Their defense is still the backbone.
And their defense can be the biggest thing to power their offense.