Orlando Magic Grades: Toronto Raptors 109, Orlando Magic 79
The Toronto Raptors took it to the Orlando Magic in the second half, stifling their offense to a standstill for another disheartening home defeat.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
| Raptors | 23 | 32 | 29 | 25 | 109 |
| Magic | 30 | 21 | 13 | 15 | 79 |
The Orlando Magic were riding high, if only for a moment. Their defense was containing one of the best offenses in the league. The Magic had an 11-point lead and all the momentum at home.
The floor would slowly drop from beneath them. With each Jonas Valanciunas rebound and each missed shot. The Raptors slowly exerted their offensive dominance against a team struggling to keep pace with the quick ball movement and struggling to withstand the physical defense against them.
The Raptors are the second best team in the Eastern Conference. They were last year, they are now. And without a team like the Magic’s best effort, it is going to be tough to compete.
The Raptors started turning the screws on the Magic, suffocating their offense with some surprisingly stellar defense and tearing them apart with DeMar DeRozan’s individual brilliance and some stellar work from key role players.
Orlando’s offense fell flat in the third quarter and sunk even lower for the rest of the second half. The Raptors turned that 11-point deficit into as much as a 35-point lead in defeating the Magic 109-79 at Amway Center on Sunday. It was the Magic’s third 30-point loss this season.
“You have games where you can’t necessarily put it in the hole,” Jodie Meeks said. “You just have to figure it out. Obviously, we shouldn’t have lost by that many points. But it happens.”
The Magic could not get themselves together or get on the same page. The few open shots they did get in the second half did not fall.
Meanwhile, Toronto attacked the basket aggressively and used its star power to keep the Magic off balance and unable to keep up
Orlando shot 50 percent in the first half, but made a mere 12 of 39 shots in the second half. The team was not moving the ball and relying too heavily on isolations. This was not the path to success for the Magic. Not even close.
The Magic got another butt-whooping, falling at home in embarrassing fashion. Leaving much more questions than answers for this team yet again.
Evan Fournier
SG, Orlando Magic
Fournier, though, may have been one of the lead culprits to the Magic losing their composure and falling apart in this game. He had five fouls and was in foul trouble for much of the game. A few rough calls against him got him steaming mad and he was doing his best to avoid a technical while still expressing some frustration.
That was how his night went. Fournier played only 25:47 in the game and the Magic needed him out there. But even he succumbed to turnovers, committing three in the game. It was not a good night for the Magic’s offensive heartbeat.
Jodie Meeks
SG, Orlando Magic
In the second quarter, Meeks and Lowry got tangled up on offense and Lowry was not called for a foul. On the following possession, Meeks purposefully shoved Lowry to earn a technical foul. It was a play Meeks said he did to spark the team. But it had the opposite effect. It gave the Raptors a golden opportunity to extend their control over the game and push the Magic further into frustration.
It was a miscalculation from the veteran. And he got torched a lot more on defense on the few times he defended DeMar DeRozan. Just a bad night from Meeks.
Bismack Biyombo
C, Orlando Magic
His stat line showed that activity. He had eight points and 12 rebounds with three blocks. He was trying to do a bit too much at times, but made his impact felt.
But that is not necessarily the Biyombo the Magic need. Sure, they need him to be active and energetic everywhere on the floor. But they also need him to be patient and stout defensively. They do not need him flying around for shots too much. And oftentimes, he got stuck with the ball in bad spots. It was clear he was trying to do just a bit too much.
Elfrid Payton
PG, Orlando Magic
Where Payton struggled again was on defense. He had a difficult time when he was guarding Kyle Lowry and, as the team’s leader when he is in the game, he could not bring the Magic back. He had a -18, not the highest mark on the team, but certainly a mark that showed some trouble.
Payton might be the best playmaker on the team. But he could not crack the Raptors defense consistently or be a calming force for the magic. It is on him to get the ball and get players moving on the floor. Something that just did not happen when he was in the game.
Toronto Raptors
19-8, 2nd East
It started with DeMar DeRozan. He scored 31 points on 13-for-21 shooting and added four assists for good measure. Even with Aaron Gordon draping him and doing a decent job contesting shots for much of the night, DeRozan just went to town on the Magic time and time again.
The Raptors defense did the rest of the work. The Magic’s shooting was bad, but the Raptors defense made it even worse than that. This was Toronto playing at its best.
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