Dec 16, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic forward Serge Ibaka (7) celebrates after they made a shot against the Brooklyn Nets during the second half at Amway Center. Orlando Magic defeated the Brooklyn Nets 118-111. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
It is the holiday season with Christmas this weekend, a big date on the NBA calendar. We take this time to take stock on the Orlando Magic and what comes next.
Christmas Day is a big day in the NBA.
The day on TV belongs to the league and is the first big national showcase. For the casual fans, it is the time when football season begins to end and the basketball season begins. In the course of an 82-game schedule, the marathon is long and people start paying attention past the quarter mark.
The trade market is already open and conversations have begun (no clue where or who they might lead to, it is far too early for that). Teams are already thinking about how to make their moves and how to get in better positioning for the Playoff push.
From now until the trade deadline, the Magic as with every team in the league will be evaluating their rosters and looking to make their moves. In the next two months, Orlando will make the decision to keep pushing in for the Playoffs or to consider a reset to their rebuild (and perhaps more).
The Magic are preparing to make some big decisions. They will largely do it with their play. If the team comes together and makes a run to get into the Playoff conversation, the team will be on solid footing moving forward. If the team continues to struggle and remain on the periphery, the storm clouds will get darker.
The holiday season is a time to begin this reflection — or continue it — and prepare for an important stretch of games.
The Magic will be hoping to wake up Sunday to some Christmas gifts — and maybe a three-game win streak — for this push to the All-Star Break and the trade deadline. There will be a rough road between now and then for sure, but the team has to make its push soon.
With this important date on the calendar and the chance for some reflection, the Orlando Magic Daily staff gathered around the fire and made their Christmas wish list for the Magic in this roundtable.
Dec 18, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic guard Evan Fournier (10) looks down after they called a foul against him against the Toronto Raptors during the second half at Amway Center. Toronto Raptors defeated the Orlando Magic 109-79. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
What do the Orlando Magic hope to see underneath the tree on Christmas morning?
David Iwanowski (@davidiwan1): The Orlando Magic should hope they will face some teams on back to backs with some DNP (rest) for their stars. The Magic are currently 13-17 with the fifth-worst net rating in the league, which is scary for a team going all in to try to make the playoffs. They have not been playing well and will have a tougher end to the schedule. Therefore, they can take all the help they can get with the hope of sneaking into the playoffs and losing four times on national TV. Teams such as the Memphis Grizzlies have been given gifts from schedule games against tough teams. The Magic can really use that. For a bit more of a stylistic gift, the Magic can hope Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson’s shooting skills get taken Monstar style and brought to the Amway Center. The Magic are 28th in true shooting percentage and 24th in 3-point percentage, which is alarming in an era so dependent on shooting ability.
Muhammed Jumani (@MuMuJumani): The Magic should hope their defense picks up very soon. They had a lot of success in the 11 games earlier this season in which their defense ranked No. 1 in the league. The past couple of weeks, there has been some slippage on that end of the floor which has resulted in the Magic placing dead last in the league in defensive rankings. As a result, the Magic have struggled mightily. The Magic are not a team that relies on their offense and expects to outscore opponents through offensive firepower, such as the Golden State Warriors or Houston Rockets, so they must ensure they control the defensive end of the floor that they are capable of.
Alvaro Grullon (@AlGrullonNBA): The Magic would love to find a player who can step up and help the team close out close games in the fourth quarter under the tree on Christmas morning. The Magic, for the most part, have played competitive basketball throughout the season. But one trend that has become obvious is the team’s inability to close out games. This is a direct result of the team not having a player that can take over the offense in the last few minutes and get to the free throw line or make a basket when it matters most. Frank Vogel and the Magic would love to have one of their own players step up and assume this role effectively or perhaps go out on the trade market and acquire a player that can get this task done.
Philip Rossman-Reich (@omagicdaily): The Magic would like to see some defense underneath their tree. That was what Frank Vogel-Claus was supposed to bring to the team when the team hired him this summer. They hoped the team would form a defensive identity. For about 10 games, the Magic seemed well on their way to doing so. They had the best defense in the league for a few weeks. That seems to be the mirage with how bad the Magic’s defense has been since. It feels like a giant lump of coal. It would be a nice gift to get that defense back. Because with an elite defense, all the Magic really needed was a competent offense.
Dec 7, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Boston Celtics center Al Horford (42) drives to the basket as Orlando Magic center Bismack Biyombo (11) attempted to defend during the second half at Amway Center. Boston Celtics defeated the Orlando Magic 117-87. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Who from the Orlando Magic will be getting coal in their stockings?
Iwanowski: I do not think any specific player can be pinpointed for being at fault for the Magic’s struggles, as they are all working hard and leaving it all out on the court. No one has been particularly disappointing — the team and players are performing about how most analysts predicted, save for Mario Hezonja who has not developed the way the team has hoped. To answer this, I take a step back and look at the direction of the franchise. The Magic do not have the assets they had two years ago and could be looking at a Sacramento Kings/ Minnesota Timberwolves style streak as a 10-12 seed for a while. For spotlighting who messed up and deserves the coal, I would look at whoever decided to speed up the rebuild faster than they should have. It sounds from the media like Rich DeVos and/or Alex Martins gave the front office the orders, so they would have to be the most reasonable choice here.
Jumani: As much as I hate to say this, I have to go with Bismack Biyombo. He has not lived up to the defensive expectations the Magic expected out of him when they signed him to a four-year, $72-million contract. For a player who is one-dimensional, and contributes only on the defensive end, this has been a disappointing year for Bismack Biyombo. Orlando is giving up a lot of points in the paint, 45.6 points per game allowed in the paint, which has them sitting at sixth-most in the NBA. This partly may be due to Serge Ibaka and Nikola Vucevic as well. But they both contribute to the team on the offensive end too. Out of the three rotational big men Orlando has, Biyombo has the worst defensive rating at 106.3, behind Serge Ibaka’s 105.6 and Nikola Vucevic’s impressive 101.4. Magic fans along with the front office expected a lot better from Biyombo, to say the least.
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Grullon: Mario Hezonja will be getting coal in his stocking this year for sure! There were such high expectations for Hezonja this season and to see what has transpired so far this season… it is a tremendous disappointment. The Magic expected Hezonja to take a step forward in his progress as a player this season and to be a key contributor off the bench, but as of today, it has not happened. Hezonja has all of the skills needed to succeed in this league, but he has not been able to put them on display consistently especially on the defensive end of the floor. It is too early to put any labels on Hezonja as a player, but it is sure looking like the Magic may have made a very poor decision by deciding to draft him fifth overall in the 2015 NBA draft.
Rossman-Reich: It may not be coal, but Rob Hennigan has got to be feeling the heat a little bit right now. His team is still in the Playoff hunt, but on the outside looking in. Worse than that, the team is underperforming and struggling to meet its talent expectations. That defense has not taken hold and the team oscillates from interesting to terrible pretty quickly. Two 30-point losses at home are not a good look either. The pressure is on Hennigan the next two months to find some fix for this team while not completely sacrificing this team’s future to sell out for an 8-seed. Then again that might be what he has to do. That does not sound like a Merry Christmas.
Dec 4, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Orlando Magic forward Serge Ibaka (7) forward Aaron Gordon (00) and forward Jeff Green (34) celebrate after a play during the third quarter against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Magic win 98-92. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
What are the Orlando Magic asking from Santa this Christmas?
Iwanowski: The Magic are asking for a team to be desperate for some veteran help and big men, and as Jonathan Tjarks of the Ringer recently pointed out, the demand for big men is way lower than the supply. The Magic are likely best off unloading some of their vets for young assets and getting back on the track they were on pre-Scott Skiles, but it seems unlikely they get fair value for any of their bigs due to the shift in the demand curve for big men. The Magic should hope a team becomes desperate for a one-year wing scorer (Jeff Green) and a two-way big man (Vucevic or Ibaka) and offers a big haul for them. As I mentioned before, Jeff Green has filled the role of bench scorer fairly well and Ibaka and Vucevic have been very good for the Magic. But the team is in an awkward stage right now and probably do not even have the ability to make the playoffs this year. They should just pack it in, gather some assets and a top pick in a strong draft and be patient, waiting for a higher ceiling. A deal such as trading one of the bigs for a young near-max level player and lottery pick would be a perfect start to getting this franchise back on track (shakes head thinking about the Draft Night deal the Magic made despite the fact Ibaka has been very good this season).
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Jumani: The Magic are asking for a go-to-guy on offense. The team has shown it can lock in on defense and deliver at times. But the Magic need a player who they can count on to score 20-25 points each game. Evan Fournier and Serge Ibaka have desperately tried and worked hard on the offensive end to help this offensive-lacking team. But it has not worked out yet. The Magic are way too inconsistent on offense to have ease at the back of their minds knowing they will have one player who will most likely score 25 points to give the team a lift offensively. Magic head coach, Frank Vogel, has done a brilliant job and worked very hard to come up with great combinations from both the starting lineup and the bench. D.J. Augustin, Evan Fournier and Serge Ibaka alongside the defensive specialist, Bismack Biyombo. And Aaron Gordon has not worked out too well, as the Magic often struggle to start the game and at times, even the third quarter. The Magic have to find a more consistent scorer, as Jeff Green has had a few good games for the Magic, but he has struggled more often than not. Shooting 38 percent from the field and 29 percent from beyond the arc is not what he was signed for, he was brought in to be an efficient spark plug offensively off the bench, which he clearly has failed to do.
Grullon: The Magic are desperately asking Santa to bring their defensive consistency and effectiveness back. For a stretch in November, the Magic looked like the defensive team we all expected and the team was on pace to become one of the top defensive teams in the league. Something changed in late November heading into December. Since then, the Magic have allowed 100 points or more in nine out of their last 10 games. The Magic are clearly at their best when the defense is leading the way and for a period of time it seemed like the Magic had figured things out on the defensive end. It kept the Magic playing competitive basketball night in and night out. The Magic will need to find their defensive identity once again if they are going to keep their Playoffs hope alive as the season progresses.
Rossman-Reich: Consistency. The Orlando Magic need consistency. They at least need to find an identity and stick with it. Which I guess is consistency. Orlando just does not seem to know what it can count on from game to game. Will the offense be good? Will the defense be good? Who will score? Is Aaron Gordon going to step up? Will Elfrid Payton? Will Serge Ibaka score? About the only thing the Magic can count on right now is Evan Fournier putting in somewhere near 18 points and Nikola Vucevic getting a double-double off the bench. Orlando just needs some consistency. Be awful nice to find some soon.
Mar 19, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) is defended by Atlanta Hawks center Al Horford (15) in the first quarter at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
What former Magic player do you wish could be “home” for the holidays to help this team?
Iwanowski: We did a ranking of the top players in Magic history, and the top two were at a position the Magic already have a surplus in. The Magic badly need wing scoring, and Tracy McGrady was one of the most prolific scorers of this era. Therefore, I think he would be the easy decision to bring back. Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard would obviously help but the team would still have the same glaring weaknesses they already have and likely would not be contenders with one of them. Adding prime McGrady would give the team the elite scorer they need and he would be a perfect fit next to defensive oriented players and a guy like Fournier who works well off the ball.
Jumani: I think Dwight Howard would be a great fit for this Orlando team. He has the ability to do what Biyombo is known for — interior defense and rim protection. In addition to that, Howard has the ability to contribute on the offensive end as well. He is averaging 14.2 points per game on 63.2 percent shooting as opposed to Biyombo’s 6.1 points per game on 48.8 percent shooting. He would bring the Magic fans back to the Amway Center, similar to the past days when the Magic had memorable playoff runs, including one to the NBA Finals, in the Dwight Howard era.
Grullon: A former Magic player I wish could be back with the team to help the team make a push for the Playoffs is Vince Carter. This young team is in need of a serious veteran presence and a player that can take a player like Aaron Gordon aside and show him the way to succeed. Carter has proven he can do that. As a player, Carter can also provide this team with effective minutes off the bench and provide the team with another outside shooting presence, which has been a struggle at times for this team.
Rossman-Reich: I think the Magic would probably like Ryan Anderson right about now. As I have surveyed the trade market and thought about the Magic’s needs, aside from a flat-out scorer, the Magic probably need a true stretch-4 so they can play some small lineups and some versatile lineups using Aaron Gordon. This is more about getting Gordon to the 4 more, at least on offense. I think his value on defense at the 3 is still immense. So it would be nice to have a 4 who can hang on the perimeter as a shooter. Not to mention the Magic need some shooting and an Elfrid Payton/Ryan Anderson pick and roll would be deadly. Tobias Harris is a close second here.
Nov 5, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel calls play as he huddles up against the Washington Wizards during the second quarter at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
What is the Orlando Magic’s New Years’ Resolution?
Iwanowski: The Magic need to resolve the uncertainty surrounding the direction of their franchise. If they really want to go all in for this season, they should work to ship guys like Mario Hezonja, Elfrid Payton and maybe even Aaron Gordon for better/older players who would fit in well with the team and earn the highest amount of wins. I wholeheartedly disagree with that idea and think the Magic would be best off reverting to their previous strategy and collecting the best assets and increasing their probability of drafting a superstar. But the awkward fit of the team is the worst possible situation for them and they need to decide which way they want to go.
Jumani: The Magic need to be better at home. It is very puzzling they are 8-7 on away games and 5-10 on home games. It would be expected for those records to be reversed. But that is not the case with this Magic squad. The Magic have had memorable road wins, against the likes of the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City, and the Atlanta Hawks. But they have dropped home games they were expected to win, against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Washington Wizards and the Denver Nuggets. The players, alongside Vogel, have also been questioning as to why they have such a poor record at home. Only time will tell. I do still think the Magic can turn the poor start at home around and make a legitimate push toward their first playoff appearance in five long rebuilding years.
Grullon: The Orlando Magic New Years’ resolution will be to find consistency in 2017. The Magic have shown they can play quality basketball and compete against some of the best teams in the league, but the issue for the Magic has been remaining consistent on both ends of the floor and putting together two to three weeks of quality basketball. If the Magic can find a way to play consistent basketball the rest of the way, there is a good chance that the Magic will be fighting for a Playoff spot come April.
Rossman-Reich: The Orlando Magic’s New Years’ Resolution is to make the Playoffs. Plain and simple. The team has pushed for this one goal all season. They reformed their roster with this idea in mind. And that is still what the Magic want to accomplish this year. Whatever they have to do to get there. A lot of that may still be internal roster improvement, but there will be pressure to cause change at the deadline to ensure they achieve this goal. That is what the Magic are hoping to accomplish this year. No sense in losing sight of the ball now.
Let us know your Holiday Wish List, who will get coal, who you want ‘home for the holidays’ and more for the Magic in the comments below. Happy Holidays from Orlando Magic Daily everyone!
