The Orlando Magic are finally coming home. After a winless road trip, the team has more questions than answers following Paolo Banchero’s injury last week. The team has struggled to find its footing.
It has, at times, felt like a win was still far away.
There is no changing the Magic lost Wednesday – 118-111 to the Indiana Pacers in what could still be an important game by the end of the season. There is no changing that the Magic had ample opportunities to win Wednesday and failed to make critical shots or get critical stops to get over the hump. There is no changing that the Magic struggled to open the game, having to rally from 18 down.
Wins and losses matter.
But in the process, the Magic may have found something. In the process, the Magic may have found a path to win. A path they can replicate and walk that will help them steady the ship.
In many ways, Orlando knows this path. It knows what it has to do to win.
It starts on defense. The Magic did not play a great defensive game Wednesday. But the best moments of the game came when they buckled down defensively.
There was no close game without holding the Pacers without a field goal for more than four minutes, erasing an 11-point deficit and getting it down to two points.
But the Magic, despite statistically looking like a strong defense once again, have major lapses. The Pacers shot better than 50 percent for the game. They made 10 of their first 12 shots in the fourth quarter to pull away and build an 11-point lead.
Defense remains the key to any success the Magic might have. That was clear Wednesday.
Most of the attention though is on the offense. It has been abysmally ad for the last week. And the Magic again shot 7 for 25 from three (28 percent). The three-point shot did not bail Orlando out.
But the Magic still were effective offensively. They got downhill and forced pressure on the rim with 70 points in the paint and 26 free-throw attempts. After two straight games struggling to finish around the rim, the Magic, and particularly Franz Wagner, made it a point to get to the basket and score.
That led the Magic to post a 115.6 offensive rating. That will win most games for the Magic. That is the kind of offense they need.
This is a lot of the same formula the team used last year. The Magic’s whole strategy has been about dominating the paint. That is not something the team has done effectively this year as they have tried to increase their 3-point volume.
This is all just a silver lining. A hope for the team moving forward after a difficult road trip.
The Magic need that confidence and hope to move forward. They need to know what is possible.
It is impossible to predict the Magic scoring 70 points in the paint. They will need 3-point shooting. And their defense has to be significantly better and more consistent.
Orlando’s margin for error is still small. One slip-up in a small area can have major consequences. It had major consequences in Wednesday’s loss.
But there was also a path for the team to move forward. And maybe that will count for something.
