ORLANDO – The Orlando Magic are 11-4 in their last 15 games. That’s tied with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves for the third-best record during this stretch. Ironically, two of Orlando’s wins this time around have been against the T-Wolves and Cavs – both on the road, in fact.
So, you might be wondering what’s driving this latest wave of Magic?
Obviously, they’re doing a lot of things right. But the most glaring of all is also the simplest of all, which is that opponents simply don’t have many shots against them.
Let’s take Orlando’s most recent victory as an example. The Utah Jazz, who are averaging 90.5 shot attempts this season — eighth in the league — took just 80 shots from the floor against the Magic. It was the 18thth time this season an Orlando opponent has made 80 shots or fewer.
No team has stopped its opponent from making 80+ shots from the field more times than the Magic. In fact, eight teams have only done it twice this season. Over the last 15 games, in particular, the Magic’s opponents have averaged a league-low 81.5 shot attempts, including just 30.7 from 3-point range, which is the second-fewest number.
So now you may be wondering what is the cause?
There are three main things: patience on offense, forcing turnovers from the opponent and securing rebounds.
As far as patience on offense goes, that’s just simple math. If you waste more time on offense, there will be less time for the other team to score quickly.
Over these last 15 games, the Magic are averaging the fourth-most shot attempts with four seconds or less on the shot clock and the fifth-most shots with between four and seven seconds remaining. Conversely, they attempt the second fewest shots with between 18 and 22 seconds remaining on the shot clock and the third fewest with between 15 and 18 seconds remaining.
During this stretch, the Magic are playing at the second-slowest pace in the league. This may seem negative, but in reality, it is often positive. It’s becoming increasingly clear that when the game is played at lightning-fast speed, it’s nearly impossible for teams to establish their half-court defense, which may explain why teams like the Washington Wizards , the San Antonio Spurs, Atlanta Hawks, Jazz and Detroit Pistons – all among the top 10 in pace for the season – are five of the worst defensive teams in the league.
Forcing opponent turnovers has been a Magic strength all year. They have improved again recently. Over the last 15 games, they actually rank first in the league in this category. This is a group, collectively, that just has a knack for getting the ball away from ball handlers and getting their hands in passing lanes.
Most importantly, many of these opponent turnovers are live ball turnovers. When this happens, it means the opponent did not shoot on that possession. Take the win against the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday as an example. The Nets committed nine live turnovers that night at the Kia Center, an extremely high number.
And then, of course, there’s the rebound. There’s nothing more deflating than giving the other team a second or third chance to score on the same drive down the field. The Magic are among the best at avoiding this. Opponents are averaging just 9.3 offensive rebounds against them for the season, the second-fewest number, and just 8.2 in the last 15 games, also the second-fewest over that span.
So even though in these last 15 games opponents have shot 48.7 percent from the field, which is a pretty high mark, they are only averaging 107.6 points, the third lowest score over this period.
The bottom line is that the Magic play a brand of basketball that has a winning formula. Few teams do what they do, which makes them unique. It’s also a style that aligns with playoff basketball. So if they get in, which would be the case if the season ended today, they’ll be ready for what’s to come.
