3 Reasons to get excited about the Orlando Magic this season
What’s so enticing about a team that has only won 36% of its games since 2012–13, has already ruled out its best player for the season, and posted the fifth-slowest pace in the league last year?
Markelle Fultz, Full-Time Creator
(and passable perimeter shooter?!?)
“My big thing is always team first. My biggest thing, I’m going to do whatever I have to do to win. Me and Cliff have talked about being more assertive, because that’s what I’m going to have to do this year in order for us to win, especially with me being more comfortable, me getting a full season under my belt and just going out there and just playing my game, really I think my game is being aggressive and being aggressive doesn’t mean that I always have to score. That’s also drawing two guys to me and kicking it out to get the team going or whether that’s me scoring a bucket, playing defense I’m going to put myself on the line to give our team the best chance to win. But I’m definitely looking forward to being more aggressive, more assertive on both ends of the floor.”
— Markelle Fultz (via Roy Parry)
The newfound confidence is contagious; Markelle Fultz is ready to take a leap. Last season, Markelle touched the ball 18.7 times per game in the frontcourt; Vucevic and Fournier led the team with 44.5 and 35.9 frontcourt touches per game, respectively. How often does the starting point guard average the sixth-most frontcourt touches on the team?
Magic fans have been clamoring for a more balanced offensive attack for years. With a lead playmaker finally in the fold, and more leeway from the head coach, they might finally see their wish come true. As great power comes great responsibility, more touches bring more opportunity.
Comments out of training camp from ‘Kelle and Head Coach Steve Clifford suggest there’s a new sheriff in town.
“You’re going to see it when you see him play. For instance, his spot-up 3s, his release point is getting to be back where it used to be… he’s a significantly better player than he was a year ago… Look, he has size, he has a natural basketball IQ, but he brings intangibles to your team… He’s very advanced, to me, in terms of understanding things organizationally, and then also just how to play, how to make his teammates play better. There’s a reason why this guy was a #1 pick; he’s got toughness, he’s got competitive spirit, and he’s got a boatload of talent. He feels so much better physically, you’ll see it in the way he’s moving. He feels better, he feels healthier, and I think also, mentally, he now has the experience of having a successful full season under his belt. So, I think he’s more confident, and with that confidence, I think, more assertive on the floor; really, in camp here, he’s played really well.”
— Steve Clifford (via Josh Robbins and Dan Savage)
Here’s a few areas where Fultz could continue to thrive with a bigger role:
Perimeter Shooting
It’s no secret that Markelle’s jumper has gone through a rollercoaster of emotions. Fultz went from shooting 41.3% from deep on 5 attempts per game in college to becoming a non-threat from downtown, overnight. An injury usually experienced by baseball pitchers, Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (T.O.S.) threw Fultz’ shoulder and confidence out of whack. T.O.S. is defined by Mayo Clinic as “a group of disorders that occur when blood vessels or nerves in the space between your collarbone and your first rib (thoracic outlet) are compressed. This can cause pain in your shoulders and neck and numbness in your fingers.”
With the injury mostly in the rearview mirror, Emperor Fultz has slowly found his new groove. Having logged 72 regular season games with Orlando, Markelle crept up to 1.9 3PA per game. In the final ten games of the regular season, including eight from the bubble, Fultz shot 2.2 attempts on 40.9% from deep; in the first round playoff series against the Bucks, ‘Kelle ticked his attempts up to 3.2, dropping 37.5% of them through the net. On the season as a whole, Fultz made only 10 of 42 pull-up three attempts; for teams to start respecting him in their gameplan, to no longer dare the point guard to shoot by going under screens, he’ll have to continue the growth he flashed in the playoffs. (4/6 on pull-up threes)
Markelle Fultz developing into a consistent three-point threat, especially via the pull-up, is the single biggest x-factor on the Magic’s roster. With how vital the pick-and-roll is to Orlando’s offense, having a floor general who defenses can’t ignore from deep would change the way teams prepare for The Magic entirely, let alone how much it would open up the rest of Markelle’s game. Markelle the magician is a wizard finisher and a mid-range assassin; seeing more whistles on drives and shooting even average from outside would take Fultz’ all-around game as a complete scoring creator to another level.
Playmaking
Fultz was slowly unleashed before the season was suspended, and even more so during Orlando’s first round playoff series against Milwaukee. The Magic’s most fruitful play become clear: a simple pick-and-roll between Markelle and Nikola Vucevic. This play puts Fournier, Ross, and the rest of Orlando’s “long boys” in C&S position, where they can serve in more ideal roles as secondary options attacking a scrambling defense. Fultz snakes into the midrange, his favorite place to operate, while Vucevic either pops for three or rolls to post position, usually gaining a mismatch down low.
Vooch’s outside shot dropped off a tad after his all-star season, but he still keeps most defenses honest. The Bucks’ gameplan involved daring average or worse perimeter shooters to beat them from deep, which resulted in Brook Lopez leaving Vucevic open from beyond the arc for what felt like the entire series. Orlando capitalized in a big way, stealing Game 1 in a match that wasn’t close enough to be a fluke. Vucevic’s 1.13 PPP as the P&R Roll-Man was Orlando’s best play by points per possession last year.
last season, Markelle Fultz created:
the 18th-most Total 3PT Assists (160)
the 22nd-most 3PT Assists per game (2.24)
last season Markelle Fultz ranked:
17th in Potential Assists (753)
T-12th in Secondary Assists (55)
Markelle Fultz made 60 passes that directly led to a C&S 3PA in 2019–20. On average, Fultz was 19.7ft from the hoop when he made these passes. 27% of the passes came from the paint; 17% of the passes directly led to an open 3PA.
One of Orlando’s goals when Markelle Fultz is on the floor? surround him with effective C&S 3PT threats. This visualization looks at how current Orlando Magic players fared in a C&S 3PT role last season:
Clutch
Markelle Fultz tied for second in the NBA in clutch steals per game last year. (0.2 per game) His 7 total clutch steals tied for 6th-most. (min. 20 games)
‘Kelle came up clutch often, first in his game-sealing steal and slam against Washington, then again in notable fashion in what many Magic fans consider the game of the year: Markelle’s triple-double and late game heroics in a win in L.A. against LeBron’s Lakers.
Orlando’s 25-and-under club is… fun again?
Orlando’s 25-and-under club
Cole Anthony (20)
Markelle Fultz (22)
Mo Bamba (22)
Chuma Okeke (22)
Jonathan Isaac (23) (out for season)
Aaron Gordon (25)
Dwayne Bacon (25)
length, defense, outside shooting, scoring, playmaking…
the young core looks more complementary by the day.
first of all, Aaron Gordon has a monster afro; AFRO AG is in the building!
…and he doesn’t plan on leaving any time soon.
Magic fans have been waiting for Aaron Gordon to have his breakout season essentially every year, yet more often than not he’s playing in poorly spaced lineups in a role that doesn’t maximize his skill-set. AG had the best stretch of his career in the months leading up to the season being suspended; partly due to having more full-time duty at the 4 with Isaac out, and partly due to Clifford entrusting him with more offensive responsibility. Capped off by his scorching hot February, there’s real reason to believe Gordon has leveled up.
AG’s per-game averages in February: (12gp)
19 PTS 9 REB 1 STL 1 BLK 6 AST/ 2 TO (37 MIN)
shooting 48–40–69
57% TS% | 54 % eFG%
21% USG% | 13.4% TRB%
22% AST% | 9.3% TOV%
Gordon’s effectiveness in the post even out-marked Vooch’s by points per possession (PPP) last season. When Orlando ran a post-up for Gordon, The Magic scored 0.91 PPP, T-19th best mark in the NBA. (115 poss) When The Magic ran a post-up for Vucevic, The Magic scored 0.77 PPP. (189poss)
here’s a longer breakdown of Aaron Gordon’s strong late-season spurt.
Cole Anthony has already shown flashes of why he used to be considered the #1 prospect in his draft class. Being a capable pull-up shooter is usually a skill held by elite players, with some exceptions. In preseason, ICE COLE came out of the gates guns a blazin’, receiving a surplus of scoring opportunities as a reserve guard, mainly running P&R for the bench unit. Anthony’s handles, pull-up threat off-the-dribble, not to mention his insane bounce for his size, could quickly make him the most exciting player to watch in Orlando’s young core; while, developing into an average-for-his-position defender could make the transition to a starting backcourt with Fultz far more seamless.
Mo Bamba has had a tough year. After showing real progress as a shot-blocker, board-collector, rim-runner, and perimeter shooter last season, Bamba sadly contracted Covid-19 over the summer. For a virus we know such little about that affects everyone dissimilarly, this 22 year-old seven-foot pro athlete was no different. Mo reportedly tested positive back in June, yet was feeling symptoms for months. Recent reports from Josh Robbins indicate that Mo is no longer feeling symptoms, but has needed months to recover his conditioning. Once he’s healthy, and if he returns anywhere close to the form he held during the second half of last season, there’s real hope that Mo can reign in the unicorn-esque role he was built to play: C&S threes, rolling for lobs, racking up rebounds, and protecting the rim remain his specialty.
Chuma Okeke’s redshirt year is over. Not signing his rookie NBA deal until recently, Chuma is real rookie. Tearing his ACL at Auburn during March Madness, Okeke is back to playing basketball after nearly two years of not seeing the hardwood. Chuma has a little Boris Diaw in his game in that he’s a skilled, cerebral team-first player who knows where to be on both ends of the floor and can immediately stretch the floor from deep. Okeke’s more athletic than Diaw, a bit bouncier, which gives the young player even more potential to round out his all-around game.
What remains to be seen is if Okeke is quick-footed enough to hang with speedy wings on the perimeter; he, Isaac, and Gordon may all be best-suited to play the 4. As Magic fans know, however, depth of lengthy, skilled players who can play multiple positions is a positive; rarely has Orlando had its full complement of players healthy at the same time. Preseason action has proved fruitful for Chuma, who’s already shown how effective his outside jumper, feel for the game, and ball-skills can be.
Dwayne Bacon, Orlando’s surprise value deal, has quickly emerged as a playable rotation player. Spot-starting in preseason, he fills the basic D&3 role of checking wings and hitting C&S threes at a near-average rate, while adding another layer as a scorer, even when he has no plays run for him. Bacon’s not a world-beater, but he fits well as the fifth starter, giving the Magic a slightly more dynamic option on the wing than Gary Clark or James Ennis.
CREAMSICLE PINSTRIPES
I mean… need I say more?
Look at these beauties.
get hyped, Magic fans; the future is almost here.
(all stats via NBA Stats dot com)
