The Orlando Magic are still establishing how they plan to defend. And so some old habits will still creep in.
They will still deploy a switching scheme and trust their center, Wendell Carter, to take his turn trying to lock down opposing guards.
Those players will usually lick their lips at the chance. Clear the floor out, reset and try to attack the big man. Surely he cannot keep up with them?
Carter is never one to complain. He has shown in his time with the Magic that they can deploy him anywhere they need him to.
Put on one of the best post players in the league, players like Nikola Jokic, and they understand how difficult he is to move. Leave him on an island against a great perimeter scorer? He will hold his own.
Carter may not make the loud defensive plays that garner attention and accolades. But everyone in the league knows he is one of the most versatile defenders in the league.
As Sean Sweeney started to take over and build his version of this Magic team's elite defense, he said the center position was critical. It would be his middle linebacker, seeing everything in front of him and directing traffic and coverages.
There is still a learning curve occurring. Everyone is learning their roles in the defense. But it is starting to take shape
"It's something new," Wendell Carter said after shootaround Wednesday. "Some of the styles of play on the defensive end are new. It was our third game into the season in New York. We're still polishing things up. But I think the biggest thing is we are sticking with it. Not overreacting to the first two games and understanding it's an 82-game season, and we are going to continue to grow."
In the early season, the Magic are trying to re-establish their defensive identity. It is the one thing that has started to find some stability early in the season, improving with each game. Orlando knows that it must be the base of the team's improvement.
Carter is at the center of it all.
He has gotten off to a good start. But there is still plenty of work for the Magic to do to round their defense into form. And Carter is the center of much of that growth.
Carter in the spotlight
The way NBA teams play defense now, much of it comes down to crowding players in the paint and closing down gaps to pass out to the 3-point line.
The Orlando Magic have always prided themselves on their pressure and closing down this space. They have always prided themselves on their ability to defend the paint and contest everything around the basket.
The Magic are playing a new style of defense under coach Sean Sweeney. They still switch, but they are trying to stay at home more and sit in gaps and lanes to deter drives and passes.
Wendell Carter said Sweeney is trying to make sure he stays in the paint more. He is switching with players to keep him as the low man around the basket.
Orlando has started to find its footing on defense.
That has come much quicker than the offense -- the Magic rank 18th in the league with a 111.9 defensive rating, but they are coming off a stellar 102.0 defensive rating against the New York Knicks. Orlando has put together probably eight solid defensive quarters out of the 12 the team has played so far.
This team is still figuring out their new coach and learning how to play Sweeney's style.
"Staying persistent. Just sticking with the process," Carter said after shootaround on Wednesday. "I thought we did a good job of doing that in the New York game. There was a good sense of fight for the whole 48, which I really, really love on both sides of the court. Just doing everything on the court with precision and pace. As long as we do that for the full 48, we have a good chance to win any game."
Wendell Carter is often the quiet one on the Magic's defense. He does not block a ton of shots, rack up a lot of rebounds or make the highlight plays. He is just always in his spot and always defending his man. What he does typically does not show up on a stat sheet.
But through three games, the Magic have a 108.2 defensive rating with Carter on the floor, 3.7 points per 100 possessions better than the team's overall average.
Opponents are shooting 58.8 percent against Carter at the rim, according to data from Second Spectrum. That ranks 12th in the league among centers who face at least five field goals per game at the rim. He was at 58.6 percent last year.
It is still early, and stats are still all over the place. But Carter has been a major presence for the team. And as they come together, Carter will still be at the center of things.
Where the defense can still recover
The defense is far from perfect, though.
Wendell Carter got off to a strong offensive start with 22 and 20 points in the first two games before scoring nine against the New York Knicks.
More importantly, he is averaging 8.7 rebounds per game, with games of seven, nine and 10 rebounds. His rebounding numbers have been solid, but not spectacular in his career. But this is an area where he has often worked to set others up.
This is an area where the Magic could use him to be more assertive to secure possession.
The Magic, as a team, have struggled with rebounding to start the season. Orlando's 65.7 percent defensive rebound rate is 20th in the league. That still means nearly one of every three misses ends up with the other team. And the Magic are giving up 14.7 second-chance points.
That Orlando is in the top-10 in opponent second-chance points allowed while being in the bottom half of the league in defensive rebound rate sugests Carter and the Magic's defense are recovering in time to contest shots around the rim.
With Carter on the floor, the Magic have a a 67.9 percent defensive rate, still not solid considering this team was closer to 75 percent last year as one of the top rebounding teams in the league.
There is still a lot to clean up to bring the defense into full focus.
But the Magic are slowly piecing together how they need to play. And so far this season, Carter has been a standout for the team, even if it is still not showing up completely on the stat sheet or analytics.
For Orlando to get where it wants and be the strongest defensive team, it will take a lot from Carter. And he has been up to the challenge.
Add us as a preferred source on Google