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
Joe Ingles and Gary Harris
-1.5 net rating, 113.7 offensive rating/115.2 defensive rating, 305 minutes
Gary Harris and Joe Ingles will both be vital veteran presences for this young team in their first foray into the playoffs. They are a critical duo not because they play together but because of the experience they give this team and the shooting they will provide.
Both have proven vital pieces to the team overall.
These players have played in big games in the playoffs before and are two of the four Orlando Magic players who have playoff experience. Harris has played in 28 playoff games including in Denver's 2020 Western Conference Finals run.
Ingles and the Utah Jazz were never quite able to break through to a conference final but Ingles has appeared in three Western Conference Semifinal series and in 59 playoff games total.
Ingles and Harris both also provide much needed shooting for the Magic. Harris is shooting a respectable 37.5 percent on 3.7 attempts per game on the year and Ingles is leading the team at 41.8 percent on 2.4 attempts per game.
In addition to being a veteran with big playoff game experience, Harris is valuable for the first unit in that he has the respect of opposing teams from beyond the arc. he can space the floor for Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner to drive to the basket. He also can occasionally put the ball on the floor and get a layup.
The question for Harris this year has been health. He is currently dealing with a plantar fascia issue that has kept him out for three of the past four games. Orlando will need to be able to rely on him to play in these big minutes in the playoffs.
Ingles, in addition to leading the team in shooting percentage from three, also leads the team from the free throw line at 85.2 percent.
For a team that lacks a true point guard, Ingles' ability to organize the offense will be used often in the playoffs and he can be expected to play more minutes with the starting unit than in the regular season.
Harris and Ingles are the team's veteran leaders of their respective first and second units. Orlando will need to rely on them to provide poise and spacing on the floor.