Who are the Orlando Magic's 4 most important duos for the Playoffs
Who are the Orlando Magic's 4 most important duos for the Playoffs
Jalen Suggs and Jonathan Isaac
+15.1 net rating, 112.8 offensive rating/97.7 defensive rating, 130 minutes
This next duo is a two-headed nightmare that leads the charge for the Orlando Magic on defense.
We have heard multiple players all season refer to Jalen Suggs as the "heartbeat" of this team. That is very clear watching them play.
Suggs sets the tone on defense for the first unit, on a team whose greatest strength is their defense. No one on this team adds more "juice" to the home crowd than Suggs.
Suggs is a ferocious perimeter defender, who will feed off of the boos on the road and the cheers at home during the playoffs.
Suggs put in a tremendous amount of work this offseason both on and off the court and everyone in Central Florida is reaping the benefits.
Suggs took a huge leap on defense and is a candidate for an All-NBA Defensive Team this year. He constantly clogs passing lanes and leads the Magic in deflections per game at 2.4 and leads the team with a 30.2 percent steal rate.
He is also first or second on the team in multiple hustle stat categories. For example, Suggs recovers 0.9 loose balls per game which would be first. He brings a heart and hustle type of energy to this team. This is the reason the home crowd reacts the way they do when they watch him play.
Suggs has also taken a massive leap from beyond the arc going from 27.1 percent from three on 3.9 attempts per game in his first two seasons to 39.6 percent on 5.2 attempts per game in year number three.
Jonathan Isaac is arguably the best defender to wear a Magic uniform and quite frankly, if he played more minutes throughout his career there would probably not be much of a debate.
This is the second year of Isaac's career where he has been healthy essentially all year - the last time was 2019, also a year Orlando made the playoffs.
Isaac leads the Magic in essentially all defensive categories, but also leads the team in overall plus/minus at +3.7 per game. Simply put, the best version of the Magic includes Isaac on the floor. They cannot get him on the floor enough, even if they are still managing his minutes and resting him on back-to-backs.
Isaac is hugely impactful and has a 101.3 defensive rating on the year -- that is not a typo. JI has a 12.9 net rating which leads the Magic and his 54.9 % block rate also leads the Magic.
Against Isaac, opponents are shooting 42.4 percent. He dominates around the basket but can also step out onto the perimeter and lock down players off the dribble.
Orlando has multiple really good defenders. But make no mistake, on defense, Isaac and Suggs lead the charge.
As a duo Suggs and Isaac do not play extended minutes together usually. This will probably change in the Playoffs. But they have a 97.7 defensive rating and a +15.1 net rating in the minutes they share the floor.
Orlando is a team that is built around its defense. Suggs and Isaac have been tasked with and have delivered on being the defensive leaders of the first and second units all year. This will need to continue into the playoffs if Orlando is going to have a good showing.