The Orlando Magic have not looked like themselves for most of the season.
At a baseline, the team was expected to play tough defense and be mentally tough. Even if their offense was not working, they were tough-minded on defense. Nothing could shake them. They were a wall that everyone was constantly running into.
The one thing that has shocked more than anything else to start the season was how the team let mistakes compound and repeat. This team got punched and was staggered, often recovering when it was too late to make a difference.
That is not Magic basketball.
Orlando can find a way to make up for mistakes. But the first thing they had to do was find this resolve. They had to be able to take punches and respond.
The Magic threw their punch in the first quarter, leading by as much as 16, thanks to stellar ball movement and activity on both ends. They scuttled through the middle quarters with turnovers. The Boston Celtics, after trailing the entire game, made their push to take the lead at 96-95 with 6:08 to play.
This is where the Magic have crumbled in previous games this year.
Not Friday night.
Orlando answered with a 9-0 run, started by an Anthony Black backcourt steal into a layup and capped off with Paolo Banchero finding Franz Wagner in the corner for a three and Desmond Bane hitting a pull-up three.
The Magic got some relief and got some cushion with a 123-110 win over the Celtics. They answered the call and finished the game with the ferocity everyone expects from this team.
"Never overreacted. I think that's going to be key for us," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Friday's game. "Teams are going to go on runs. Our guys' ability to keep poise and keep their focus and communicate the way they were in huddle with one another, I think those are going to be key for this group to keep growing and get better."
They looked more like thesmelves and the way they are supposed to. That is something this group can finally build on.
Answering the call
The Orlando Magic have not been in many close games. It is safe to say a lot of the team's problems started with a poor second half against the Atlanta Hawks, where the offense dragged and some doubt began to creep in after the stellar preseason and solid opening game.
There was no whiff of the team struggling to answer the bell before that moment. But that has quickly become the story of the season.
After Tuesday's deflating blowout loss to the Hawks, the Magic again needed to prove they could take a punch and come back swinging.
That was what was so dangerous about the Boston Celtics. They are struggling and still finding their way, but they are still potent as a shooting team. Jaylen Brown can certainly take over a game -- and did in the third quarter on his way to 32 points.
If the Magic were going to win, they would need to lean on their identity.
The Celtics made their push in the fourth quarter and the Magic did not let nearly two quarters of frustrating offense derail them. They stayed in the game.
Orlando posted 39 points in the fourth quarter and made four threes. It was the same kind of free-flowing offense they used to pull ahead by 16 points in the first quarter.
The Magic have been hunting for this kind of fast-paced, ball movement offense they have been gunning for, but they have struggled to piece together in the early part of the season.
Franz Wagner scored nine of his 27 points in the fourth quarter. Desmond Bane had eight of his 22. The ball moved and several players contributed with seven players ultimately scoring in double figures for the game.
The ball found who it needed to and the Magic looked energetic on both ends to close out the game.
"I think that's the recipe," Bane said after Friday's game. "We've got a lot of talented guys on this team. it will be different guys every night. Just share it, play the right way and trusting everybody."
More importantly, the Magic limited their turnovers to just one in the quarter and kept the Celtics off the line, giving up only five free throws (many of them late as the teams jockeyed for point differential for the NBA Cup).
All those mistakes that have kept the team from reaching its potential early in the season went away.
Orlando attacked downhill with 16 points in the paint in the quarter, got to the foul line with 14 free throw attempts in the fourth quarter, and hit open threes, making four of seven in the quarter. This is how the team was always meant to play.
The Magic finished the game shooting 24 of 31, missing some free throws in the third quarter to create some hand-wringing. They gave up only 16 free throw attempts to a Celtics team that does not draw a lot of fouls.
They forced 14 turnovers for 22 points, a rarity against the stingy Celtics. Orlando forced five for nine points in the final quarter.
The Magic made shots, going 17 for 36 from three and shooting 50.0 percent overall. That helped confidence spread.
Fighting the dips
There are always lulls in any game.
The Orlando Magic had one of their best offensive showings of the season with 123 points and a 124.2 offensive rating. That is the third game where the team surpassed 120.0 points per 100 possessions. They had only 16 of those games last year.
Orlando's offense showed its true potential.
But the team looked rough through the middle two quarters. The problems that have put the Magic in this seeming hole still exist.
The Magic scored only 46 points in the middle two quarters. They had 15 turnovers in the game -- eight came in the second quarter as the Celtics closed the deficit.
Orlando's rhythm and confidence were not completely shot, but the team was staggered. It had to find itself again.
Where the Magic struggled to get their rhythm back in previous games, the Magic rediscovered it Friday night. And that is a sign of growth.
The Magic did not let their frustrations beat them as they have in previous games. They showed their toughness to get this win.
Now they just have to do it again and make it habit to cement their identity.