The Orlando Magic Are Streaking Toward The Playoffs Behind Their Defense

Key Headlines

• The Orlando Magic have won 13 of their past 16 games and moved to fourth in the East at 37-26
• An elite defense is powering their playoffs hopes, sitting fourth in defensive rating (112.2)
• Third-year guard Jalen Suggs is playing like an All-Defensive Team candidate and he’s flanked by other high-level defenders like Franz Wagner, Jonathan Isaac and Anthony Black

Over the past three days, the Boston Celtics’ 11-game winning streak, the Denver Nuggets’ six-game winning streak and the Milwaukee Bucks’ six-game winning streak all came to a halt. That leaves one club as the NBA’s hottest: the Orlando Magic, which have won five straight, eight of nine and 13 of 16.

Once toeing the line of .500 at 24-23 and six games back of homecourt advantage, the Magic are now 37-26 and fourth in the East, half a game ahead of the fifth-seeded New York Knicks and 1.5 games clear of the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers. Tracking for 48 wins, they’re eyeing their highest win total since 2010-11, back when Dwight Howard and Stan Van Gundy were still shepherding things in central Florida. They could clear 48, too, given they’re largely healthy and tout the league’s ninth-easiest remaining schedule.

What Are The Magic Doing Well?

Orlando’s offense has perked up a little during this 13-3 stretch (16th, compared to 23rd on the year), but what continues to define this group is its get-in-your-face, shut-off-your-water, fourth-ranked defense (fifth over this span). It’s one of the NBA’s absolute best units, fueled by size, chaos, aggression and mobility.

Unlike their top-five contemporaries, the Magic don’t need to force bad shot after bad shot or coax offenses into analytically dubious spots (15th in opposing rim frequency, 12th in opposing three-point rate). Whereas the Timberwolves, Celtics, Cavs and Thunder all rank top five in opposing effective field goal percentage, Orlando is just 14th. They’ve all arrived at the same destination, the Magic simply forged their own divergent path.

That path: indelible pressure to yield takeaways and a domineering presence on the glass. They sit second in opponent turnover rate (15.5 percent) and third in defensive rebounding rate (74.8 percent). Clean possessions and second chances are rarities against them.

Size and mobility are often discordant traits on the basketball court, especially defensively. Prioritizing one and its benefits tends to come at the expense of the other and its benefits. Orlando ignores that notion. It regularly trots out jumbo lineups and still flies around the floor, capable of blanketing space inside and flustering guards outside.

In a win Wednesday over the Washington Wizards, their shortest starter was 6-foot-5 Jalen Suggs, who was flanked by 6-foot-7 Anthony Black, 6-foot-10 Franz Wagner, 6-foot-10 Paolo Banchero and 6-foot-10 Goga Bitadze. A day earlier — this one a win over the Charlotte Hornets — 6-foot-4 Gary Harris and 6-foot-10 Wendell Carter Jr. started ahead of Black and Bitadze. There’s not a single negative defender in that list, and all of them move at least as well as their size indicates.

Who Is Leading Orlando’s Defense?

The star of the defense is Suggs, who’s amid a breakout third season and should earn an All-Defensive Team nod. He is one of the league’s premier stoppers, a kamikaze defender whose thoughts are free from the burden of injury risk — an “if he dies, he dies” mantra, but about his own well-being.

He’ll hound slippery guards on the perimeter, go body blow for body blow with burly forwards in the post, detonate off-ball actions, hurl himself into passing lanes, and bait illegal screens without regard for his health. His elite steal (2.3 percent, 88th percentile) and block rates (1.2 percent, 90th percentile) don’t approximate his true level of havoc.

Suggs’ distinguished playmaking sets the tone for much of Orlando’s roster. Among rotation players, only Black and Carter rank below the 50th percentile in steal rate, while Jonathan Isaac (96th), Markelle Fultz (87th), Harris (87th) and Joe Ingles  (78th) join Suggs above the 75th percentile. Bitadze’s also in the 69th percentile in steal rate and 93rd in block rate. His defensive versatility and playmaking were crucial during Carter’s extended absence earlier this year.

Following a half-decade marred by injuries, Isaac has stayed relatively healthy and reminded everyone of his defensive prowess. His 96th percentile steal rate complements an 100th percentile block rate (3.9 percent). Orlando’s defense is 8.0 points better per 100 possessions with him on the floor. He’s tied for fifth in Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus (plus-3.4).

The 26-year-old aces whatever responsibilities asked of him. He’ll torment off-ball shooters, slither around screens, stymie big wings, anchor the paint as a low man, and eliminate passing windows. His marriage of fluidity, dexterity, length, size and instincts are brilliant. There might not be a better per-minute defender than him this season, and it’s among the reasons Orlando is locking offenses in the torture chamber.

If Suggs and Isaac don’t toss water on an offensive flame, Wagner is always lurking. Whether it’s rotating against baseline drives, stunting at the nail, clogging up the paint or soundly positioning himself to prevent openings, he’s an astute helpside defender. On the ball, he’s light, flexible and can quickly decelerate to mirror change of speeds.

He may not be the headlining star of possessions as routinely as Suggs or Isaac, but he’s constantly plugging gaps and etching his signature upon Orlando’s defense. There aren’t many wing defenders as good as him, let alone ones still south of their 23rd birthday.

Although Black’s playing time has fluctuated a bit in recent weeks, he’s certainly announced himself as a member of Orlando’s pestering pack with an agile 6-foot-7 frame, lively paws and keen off-ball awareness. Rookies six weeks removed from entering their 20s don’t typically defend like him.

For Black, it doesn’t even seem out of place. He’s merely one of the guys, smoothly fitting into the ethos of this Magic team.

Banchero isn’t of the caliber of his four teammates, but he’s taken significant steps forward in year two. His size, strength and mobility are major assets, both on and off the ball. Even if he’s not driving the train defensively, he’s not slowing it down either, and his creation chops allow the Magic to weather so many defense-first lineups offensively.

The most exhilarating sequences for Orlando are when all the immense talent coalesces. Suggs, Black and Fultz sticking their nose into trouble on the perimeter. Size — namely Isaac, Wagner, Carter and Banchero — surrounding them to blot out any mistake their hawkish approach may produce.

One rotation. Then another. And another. A fourth for good measure. Defending teams to the point of submission until a turnover is easier to accept than further futile efforts toward an optimal shot. No wonder opponents take the third-most long twos (between 14 feet and the three-point line) against them.

These are the sorts of cohesive, menacing, rangy plays best exemplifying the 2023-24 Magic.

Orlando’s offense could hold it back from generating serious playoff noise this season. The shooting around Banchero and Wagner requires an overhaul. Defenses stuff the paint to invite jumpers. Offensive trips grow sticky and arduous. More of that awaits them in April.

A quiet playoff debut is OK; it does not destine this core for a life of early exits. Their three best players are 21 and 22 years old. Two of them are rising stars. The third is a defensive ace who’s blossoming offensively (and why should I rule out stardom anyway).

As the rebuild enters a new phase, the Magic’s needs are clear. Add shooting to the rotation without sacrificing the defensive identity cultivated by their youthful pillars. It’s an identity breeding optimism, a lengthy hot streak and a return to the postseason conversation, all of which have escaped Orlando for much of the past 15 years.