The Orlando Magic know this is not how they need to play. They know this is not their formula to win. They know that they cannot get into a rat race.
It is the kind of thing that can actively annoy them during games -- and seems to be annoying their coach a bit.
Orlando has lost a bit of its identity in the last few weeks. The defensive effort has been inconsistent at best and poor overall. The team has gone through long offensive droughts that have made comfortable wins dicey and cost them close games on several occasions.
The Magic are spending the early part of their 2026 trying to find themselves again. They are trying to re-establish the defense that made them a terror to the league.
Until then. . . they simply need to find a way more often. They need to be able to search for all of this and still pick up wins. They do not have to be pretty. They just need to be wins.
Orlando found one quarter of defensive clarity, going on a 17-0 run in the second quarter to retake the lead. They then held on as their defense bled points, keeping up on offense.
When Tristan da Silva finally hit a backbreaking three-pointer with 1:32 to play, the Magic had some relief. They made just enough stops to win. They found a way to win 135-127 over the Indiana Pacers, even if it is not the way they want to.
"All that matters is getting the win," Paolo Banchero said after Sunday's win. "You keep that in mind. They are tough to guard, so you've just got to figure out a way to win."
The Magic are certainly not where they want to be. They are not playing the way they know they need to play at all. And Sunday's game was another example of how things have slipped.
But until the Magic find their way, they still need to find a way. And winning without your best is a skill in itself.
Orlando has not played to its potential or to its standard. But the team has not let go of the rope.
Magic found their offense
It was clear from the beginning of Sunday's game that the Orlando Magic were a bit off-kilter. The Indiana Pacers scored 36 points in the first quarter and seemed to be able to parade to the rim. They took as much as a 12-point lead.
Except for the second quarter, the Magic were simply bleeding points, giving up 42 points and 20 to Pascal Siakam in the third quarter.
The Magic could not slow the Pacers down. They had no choice but to keep up.
"We shared it and moved it and trusted the pass," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Sunday's win. "Our defense was not what it needed to be. I think there are games like that in the league. Our ability to sit down and get stops is what we've got to continue to hang our hat on. Our guys stayed with it and stayed the course and found a way down the stretch."
That is what happens sometimes. Every team will have a game where the defense does not work -- much like how the offense did not work in Wednesday's win in Indianapolis. The good teams find a way to stay in that game.
Orlando did that throughout, keping up the pressure with an unrelenting offense. They made their push to the lead in the second quarter and held on through the rest of the game.
The Magic made 56.0 percent of their shots and tallied 34 assists on 47 field goals. Orlando scored 60 points in the paint, nearly matching the 70 the team scored in Wednesday's road win.
The Magic kept that attack going with 34 free throw attempts (missing eight in a continuing concerning trend). Orlando made 15 of 32 (46.9 percent) from three.
The Magic attacked and stayed aggressive. They worked to get good shots and executed. That is what the game called for and needed. That is what they delivered for the win.
Just enough defense to win the game
Still, the Orlando Magic know they need their defensive identity to win. This is not a win they are celebrating. This is a win they survived.
Without their 22-point defensive second quarter, that included a 17-0 run, the Magic might have remained in big trouble because of their slow offensive start.
Jamahl Mosley said the team was slow and struggled to keep players in front of them throughout the game. The second quarter worked because the team got angry about the defense and did something about it.
The question for a while now is why it takes them so long to do it and why they do not recognize it and correct it sooner.
This team still needs to look itself in the mirror. Even after a win.
"A win is a win," Desmond Bane said after Sunday's win. "It was good to gut it out. But every game you have to look yourself in the mirror and look the team in the mirror and see where we could have been better. We'll hopefully get better and string a couple of wins together on the road."
This team still knows it will take defense to win. That is still the identity they want to embody.
Trailing by one point with seven minutes to play, the Magic got stops on three consecutive possessions ot open up a seven-point lead thanks to a Desmond Bane layup and threes from Paolo Banchero and Anthony Black. That proved to be enough to win.
Orlando will need more. Desmond Bane said everyone is going to have to do a little bit more on defense, especially without Jalen Suggs.
Doing just enough on defense is not a sustainable formula for this team. Not with the identity the team knows it needs and what has been the key to the team's success.
"I think that's the most important part is getting the win at the end of the day," Tyus Jones said in the locker room after Sunday's game. "We're going to have to win in different ways in this league. There are so many games. Some nights you aren't going to have it on offense, some nights you aren't going to haveit defensively for whatever reason. You have to figure out different ways to win the game."
This is squarely not good enough. The Magic have not been good enough for a few weeks now. They know they must improve.
But in the meantime, the Magic will take the wins where they can get them and however they can get them. That is the part that has not been consistent enough yet.
Until they are consistent, win any way you can.