Orlando Magic have complete control of their Playoff destiny

The Orlando Magic control over their destiny.

With only 10 games left, the Magic find themselves in a prime position to inch closer to not only homecourt advantage in the first round of the Playoffs but potentially the 3-seed. The team will have to compartmentalize their focus to prepare for the last weeks of the regular season.

The Magic's schedule is looking a little daunting with matchups against the LA Clippers and New Orleans Pelicans in the next week and a tough road trip to close the season at the suddenly surging Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers (they close the season April 14 against the Bucks at Kia Center).

The players and coaches in Orlando will need to buckle up for these games because these teams are fighting for Playoff positioning. After the team finishes its eight-game homestand Saturday against the Memphis Grizzlies and Monday against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Orlando Magic have just one more game against a team outside of playoff contention -- the April 5 game against the Charlotte Hornets on the road.

They only have one other game against a team with a record worse than .500 -- the April 7 game against the Chicago Bulls.

No game is worth overlooking. The Magic will have their hands full with teams trying to play spoiler nonetheless. But still, the Magic hold the keys to their success. They are the ones sitting in control over the 5-seed with the chance to make up the one game between them and the New York Knicks for fourth.

The Magic getting the 2-seed is possible, but it is not probable. They will need a lot of help to accomplish that feat. But the 3-seed is certainly possible with the Cavaliers only 1.5 games ahead in the standings entering Wednesday's game and nine losses in the team's last 15 games.

If Orlando takes care of its business and wins its games, it will have a good shot at climbing the standings once again.

The Magic have full control of their destiny.

That is a statement that was put to bed ever since Dwight Howard left town in 2012. The Magic have not had control of their destiny since then. They had to rally with a mad-dash 22-9 run to close the seaosn and sneak into the 7-seed in 2019. That team always had a ceiling and could not grow in 2020 into something more.

This year is different and feels different because the team is fighting for a top seed in the conference. They are not as worried for their postseason fate in the final weeks of the season. They are trying to position for seeding.

They have surpassed their ceiling and have entered a realm where pundits really do not know what to expect. You can make a case that the team can go far just as well as you can make an argument that they will lose in the first round.

Ultimately, this coaching staff will be defined by how they prepare their players for the stretch run they are about to endure. They never had to prepare for anything like this at this time of the year besides the upcoming draft. It is something new.

This organization will not be wholly focused on the draft this offseason. They will shift their focus to the Playoffs. This coaching staff has to make sure the players on the roster are ready for the challenge ahead and make sure that they are locked in before every game.

That is a huge part of controlling your own destiny. The Magic's coaching staff is in full control of how they prepare, practice, rest, eat, motivate. There is still a prize to win.

Now the Magic have to build a Playoff regimen or some type of Playoff template of what to expect now that they have punched their ticket and clinched a Playoff spot. The coaches will have their hands full of not only creating a template but following the template to the tee to get maximum results.

The team has to beat who they are supposed to beat now that they have control of their own destiny. Losing games against sub-.500 teams and bottom feeders will not work at this point in the year. As the coaching staff says, the Magic have to play their best basketball as the season winds to its conclusion.

The Magic have to finish the season strong in order to have the momentum needed to really make a push.