The Orlando Magic entered this offseason knowing they had a major problem to solve.
The team has two offensive engines and scorers in Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, both expected to be regular All-Stars, so long as the Magic are a winning team. They have a defense that can stymie and frustrate teams throughout the regular season, enough on its own to make them a tough team night in and night out.
But all of it comes crumbling apart in the Playoffs. The Magic were never going to be able to achieve their ambitions of building a championship team with an elite defense and an offense that cannot function.
Their playoff series with the Boston Celtics turned into repeated attempts from Banchero and Wagner to bang their head against the wall of the Celtics' defense to find a way through. Boston was unafraid of anyone.
It is to Banchero and Wagner's credit that they put some dents in that wall -- averaging 29.4 and 25.8 points per game in the series respectively.
Good teams have elite defenses but they can also score. You need both to succeed.
And so the Magic had to go about this offseason trying to solve an intractable problem for the team ever since Dwight Howard's departure in 2012. They needed to find some offense.
That just has not happened for the Magic.
"They are the Joe DiMaggio of offensive incompetence," Zach Lowe said on The Zach Lowe Show, discussing teams that need an offensive makeover. "Twelve straight years they have ranked 20th or worse in points per possession. That is incredibly hard to do in a 30-team league that go up and down in cycles that are like two and three years, not 12 years."
It was indeed an especially poor offensive season for the Magic last year -- making it quite a miracle they finished 41-41 and made the Playoffs, a true testament to the defensive culture they have built. Orlando not only finished 27th in offensive rating, but also had the worst 3-point shooting season the league has seen in a decade.
If they are going to accomplish their goals and their ambitions for the season, it starts on offense. And it is will take a lot to get there.
Offseason acquisitions boost the offense
It should be clear first and foremost, then, that the Orlando Magic needed to improve their personnel. They needed to do something significant to boost the supporting cast around their two young stars.
The team hoped to do that by making smaller moves, acquiring a reliable low-volume 3-and-D player in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Injuries derailed many of those plans and Caldwell-Pope was not the addition the team needed. And that was before accounting for his puzzling struggles from three -- 34.2 percent for the regular season and 26.1 percent in the Playoffs.
Orlando acted quickly to change the dynamics offensively, acquiring Desmond Bane at the beginning of the offseason (even before the NBA Finals ended) as the centerpiece addition.
That move has largely been viewed as a catapult for the Magic into contention. In Bane, the Magic get an excellent 3-point shooter (39.2 percent 3-point shooting last season) on volume (6.1 attempts per game), who is a capable defender.
More than that, he is another player who can attack and create for this team. He averaged 19.2 points per game (after two straight seasons better than 20.0 points per game) and averaged 5.3 assists per game, his second straight year with more than 5.0 assists per game.
"I just think at a very basic level, not only does it make their team better and not only does it round out a weak spot -- shooting -- for them," Lowe said. "It gives them more options in two-man actions to get good matchups and put the defense into a bad choice."
That is the heart of a good offense. It puts the defense in compromised positions. The Magic collected another player who is versatile in his role and be a passer for this team.
Hope from their main stars
There is still no external shock that can fully improve this offense. Desmond Bane and Tyus Jones might be enough to climb the Orlando Magic out of the bottom 10 in the league. But that will not be enough to keep the Magic contending. They need to see growth from their top players.
There have been plenty of signs of that hope.
For as bad as the Magic were overall on offense last year, they showed hints during their run to the Playoffs to end the season.
Orlando had a 112.7 offensive rating after the All-Star Break, which was 21st in the league. During the final 18 games, the Magic had a 113.6 offensie rating (still 21st) and a 115.4 offensive rating when Banchero and Wagner shared the floor.
Banchero especially took a major leap as he got healthier following his return from a torn oblique, averaging 29.0 points per game and shooting a 58.3 percent true shooting percentage after the All-Star Break.
The Magic are hoping that improved spacing will unlock more decisionmaking and easier shooting from their stars.
The return of Jalen Suggs to the lineup should also help, especially with his desire to push the pace more. The Magic played at the slowest pace in possessions per 48 minutes last year. That may always be the case because of the Magic's physical defensive style and Banchero's desire to slow things down.
But getting an energetic guard like Suggs back in the lineup to push the pace and having more guards who can grab the ball and go should help this team find some easier points.
The entire formula to improve the offense is there for this team.
Putting the pieces together
Now, it is just about putting all the pieces together.
The Orlando Magic have put together plenty of talent that should work together and create a team that can score and put up points. There is no excuse for this team continuing this streak for a 13th year.
To be sure, if the Magic struggle again on offense or do not make significant strides, they will have a lot of questions to answer. Orlando cannot afford to let this streak of offensive futility continue.