ATLANTA -- There was no escaping the afterglow of Tuesday's 83-point game from Bam Adebayo.
Fans who bought jerseys were gifted the iconic photo of Adebayo holding up a piece of paper with 83 on it (an homage to Wilt Chamberlain's famous 100 photo). There were more than a few fans wearing the special Adebayo 83 jersey the Miami Heat put on sale. One person in the back-of-house areas was wearing a black shirt that simply read: "Wilt. Bam. Kobe."
It has been the story of the week in the NBA, drawing praise and condemnation one way or the other.
There is no getting around the fact that Adebayo is the story around the league. And while he is not the typical high-volume scorer, he now is one. Someone that teams are gameplanning for differently.
The Orlando Magic, a proud defensive team that is playing its best during this now-seven-game win streak, certainly changed some of its defensive coverage. They moved away from some of their switching scheme and aligned Wendell Carter's minutes with Bam Adebayo's.
Carter played a big role in keeping Adebayo to 20 points on 6-for-15 shooting and seven rebounds. He made six of 10 free throws and had a -2 plus/minus.
"You know what he is capable of doing," coach Jamahl Mosley said of Bam Adebayo after Saturday's game. "He is able to knock shots down. So you have to guard him respectfully. He knows how to get to the free-throw line. You have to pay attention to what he is capable of doing.
"Listen, 83 is hard, and he did it. That's what you know he is capable of doing every single night. You have to guard him a certain way each time. I thought Wendell Carter did an unbelievable job guarding him in those minutes because he is willing and wanting to take on those challenges."
Carter proved to give Adebayo some fits and to be a good piece of resistance to the former All-Star. It was another reminder of how vital Carter is to the team's defensive scheme.
Despite an up-and-down season, Carter took the challenge defensively and set the tone for the team. It is why he is so vital to this team's success and turnaround.
Carter vs. Bam
It is probably overreacting some to the 83-point game to put this much attention on Bam Adebayo.
After all, he is averaging only 20.0 points per game this season. The Orlando Magic held them to his average. Maybe this should not be so impressive. The 83-point game was the outlier, after all.
But there was added attention on this game and on this matchup specifically. And that spotlight was on Wendell Carter to deliver for the Magic to secure the season sweep and a big win for the standings.
According to NBA.com's tracking stats, Adebayo scored 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting with Carter as his primary defender. He went 1 for 3 from three and 2 for 4 from the foul line. It was a solid showing from the primary matchup.
Carter seemed to stand up to the challenge.
"That's something I live for," Wendell Carter said in the locker room after Saturday's game. "That's one of the things that got me into the league is defense. Going against a player like that, one of the best in the league, is always an honor. As a competitor, that's something I live for to go against guys at the top fo the league and show I can hold my own."
Carter certainly held his own, even if the numbers are not outstanding by this metric. The Magic's 114.5 defensive rating with Carter on the floor probably says much more too about how the Magic's defense worked.
Then again, a lot of that was about how shaky the team was to close the game. Before the final six minutes, the Magic had a 104.8 defensive rating with Carter on the floor.
Carter has been a game-changer for the team defensively.
Carter's game-changing defense
Much of the Orlando Magic's success since the All-Star break has been about the challenge the team has set for itself defensively.
Notably, the team has challenged Paolo Banchero to take on more defensive responsibility and guard the best perimeter players on the other team -- Bam Adebayo scored five points on 1-for-6 shooting with Banchero as his primary defender.
The team has regained its defensive intensity and that has powered the team not only to a seven-game win streak, but a 10-3 record. The Magic have a 108.3 defensive rating since the All-Star break.
Wendell Carter has played a big role in that. He has taken on the challenge, looking far more athletic and mobile since the reset after the break and taking on more responsibilities defending the perimeter in the Magic's switching packages.
For the season, opponents are shooting 45.3 percent against Carter, according to NBA.com's defensive stats. That is 3.9 percentage points better than expected.
Since the All-Star break, opponents are shooting just 35.8 percent with Carter as their primary defender, 13.1 percentage points better than expected.
Orlando has a 110.8 defensive rating with Carter on the floor, nearly two points per 100 possessions better than the team's overall average. Since the All-Star break, the Magic have a 106.0 defensive rating with Carter on the floor, 2.3 points per 100 possessions better than the team's average.
Even if these defensive metrics and numbers are imperfect, they do suggest how impactful Carter has been and how big his defense has been.
This has always been the case throughout the season. Carter is a defensive security blanket.
He will always be tested against premier opponents -- whether it is Karl-Anthony Towns, Jarrett Allen, Joel Embiid or someone like Bam Adebayo. And Carter tends to pass these tests when it is his matchup.
There will be a lot of questions to ask about Carter as the Magic try to advance deeper into the Playoffs. But for this team, he has proven to be someone who can step up defensively.