The NBA Finals have finally arrived.
A season that began in October with 30 teams believing they could win the title is down to two. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers took vastly different paths to get to the finals. But they are both just four wins away from the ultimate goal.
The Orlando Magic have been out of the Playoffs and enjoying their offseason for the last month. Their five-game series with the Boston Celtics felt like it showed how close the Magic could be, thanks to the development and presence of their two young stars. But it was still a first-round loss, following a 41-41 season.
Orlando is still far away from contention. And the team has already seemingly made it clear it will take steps this offseason to try to close that gap through offseason moves.
The Pacers and Thunder were not where the Magic are now, not too long ago. There is a lot the team could learn from both teams. And there is more proof that the Magic are on the right track.
The Thunder were 24-58 in 2022, the same year the Magic were 22-60. They climbed to 40 wins and then 57 and 68 in the past three years -- the Magic went to 34, 47 and 41 in that same period. The Pacers went from 25 wins in 2022 to 35, 47 and 50 in the past three years.
It does feel like Orlando fell behind teams that were winning the same number of games as them three years ago. There are things the team can learn from these teams that can click.
A star emerges
Part of that is the emergence of a star. That is what has powered the Oklahoma City Thunder to success as much as the strong drafting and the cache of picks they have used to build up their talent base.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the MVP and has been an All-NBA player the last two seasons. Top-end talent is the easiest path to success.
The Indiana Pacers also made a major transformative trade, moving Domantas Sabonis for Tyrese Haliburton. That gave Indiana a clearer identity as a fast-breaking team. Haliburton set the Pacers on this path.
The Orlando Magic have two star players. However, it is essential to note that Franz Wagner completed his fourth season in the league, while Paolo Banchero finished his third. Gilgeous-Alexander is 26 and in his seventh season, and Haliburton is 24 and in his fifth season.
Their stars are not too far ahead of the Magic, but they are ahead. Orlando has this part locked up -- or will have it locked up in Banchero's case this summer. The team has the star core.
Identity matters
It also has something else the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers have too: A clear-cut identity.
The Thunder built their identity on their hounding defense. They torture teams into turnovers and suffocate them defensively.
The Orlando Magic finished second in the league in defensive rating at 109.1 points allowed per 100 possessions and second in the league with a 16.8 percent turnover forced rate. The Thunder led the league at 106.6 points allowed per 100 possessions and a 16.9 percent turnover forced rate.
These two teams have built their identity on their defense and putting teams in tight corners and into mistakes. Granted, the Thunder do a better job scoring off those mistakes -- 21.8 points off turnovers per game and 16.1 fastbreak points per game compared to the Magic's 19.0 points off turnovers per game and 13.8 fastbreak points per game.
Undoubtedly, the Magic's biggest issue is that their offense lags so far behind their defense. The defense is good enough to get them into the Playoffs, but they are not going anywhere without a functioning offense.
The Pacers' defense was never that bad. But they struggled with defense as they began to emerge after hitting on a fast-breaking style with Tyrese Haliburton.
What elevated the Pacers to contention was trading for Pascal Siakam. Undoubtedly, his presence and the Pacers' hitting on a defensive style that fits them elevated the team from an interesting up-and-coming team to a true contender.
Orlando is in that phase. It may take a move to get them to correct the offense. But like the Pacers, the Magic have to do this without sacrificing that key defensive identity.
Orlando and Indiana are mirrors of each other. But the Pacers have figured out how to build a defense that works for them -- 13th in the league this season -- and allows their offense to be their offense.
The Magic need to find a way to build an offense that accentuates their defense. Like the Thunder, the Magic need to find a way to turn the turnovers they create into easier offense. Adding shooting and more pace with their guards would help take advantage of their defense's strengths.
It is clearly time for the Magic to make that move.
Depth still matters
The last part the Orlando Magic will learn from these teams is that depth still matters. But more important than depth is succeeding in their roles. That is what the best teams do. They have players who star in their roles.
The Indiana Pacers have leaned on their bench for much of the season, averaging 39.8 point sper game off the bench. That was good for seventh in the league. The Orlando Magic and Oklahoma City Thunder are ranked 17th ad 18th in that category with 35.8 and 35.1 points per game respectively.
The Magic's superpower in the regular season has been that they get a lot of scoring from their bench. Injuries depressed that this year, especially losing Moe Wagner, a potential sixth man of the year candidate. Orlando was ranked fifth in bench scoring with 40.0 points per game before Wagner's injury.
One of the reasons the Magic struggled was it lost a lot of that scoring off the bench.
But as they learned in the Playoffs each of the last two years, their bench scoring did not carry over. Moe Wagner and Cole Anthony struggled in the 2024 Playoffs, averaging 6.3 and 5.1 points per game in that series with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Magic averaged only 18.2 points per game off the bench.
The Pacers and Thunder have maintained their bench scoring, averaging 35.4 and 33.4 points per game off the bench.
Indiana has had players step up throughout the postseason whether that Bennedict Mathurin, Obi Toppin or T.J. McConnell filling their role. Oklahoma City has won games because of Alex Caruson and his defense or Kenrich Williams and his shooting or Aaron Wiggins.
It is about starring in your role. And that is something the Magic are looking for more of with their depth and bench scoring.
It is clear Orlando still has work to do to reach the level Indiana and Oklahoma City have reached. The team still has tweaks to make and things the team must learn.
But the Pacers and Thunder also show the Magic how quickly they can climb those ranks. A Finals trip is not too far off.