National Basketball Association

Orlando Magic forced to make changes, come out with same result

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 10:08 p.m. ET

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Fansided, Philip Rossman-Reich/FanSided via Orlando Magic Daily

The Orlando Magic were forced to make changes thanks to serge Ibaka’s injury. The changes largely worked, yet the team came out with the same result.

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The Orlando Magic got dealt a big blow before Wednesday’s game against the LA Clippers. Serge Ibaka tried to play through a shoulder injury but could not get through warmups and so was a scratch for the first time this season.

Frank Vogel seemed ready to make a lineup change anyway. He put Nikola Vucevic back into the starting lineup. The Magic needed to do something having lost five of six games and seeing their season slip away.

The Serge Ibaka injury would force some ingenuity.

Enter the strange lineups for the Magic — at least, the strangest yet seen this season. Aaron Gordon played the 4 with Jeff Green sliding in at the 3. Vogel dusted off Mario Hezonja with Jeff Green and Aaron Gordon slid down to the 4. All were done out of necessity with the strange lineups and rotation without Ibaka in the lineup.

The results?

It was still a loss — a 105-96 defeat to the Clippers at Staples Center on Wednesday — but it was still a better performance. One that could raise a few eyebrows that something was working and some experimentation should continue as the Magic try to get back in the win column and save their fledgling season.

The result still was the result. And those matter for a team trying to stay alive in the Playoff race, and now having lost six of the last seven games. There is no moral victory or solace in a good effort.

Still, Orlando found something in its experimentation. Perhaps something different and energy to go back to break out of this funk. Orlando had to change out of necessity and played some good basketball to get there.

Gordon is the first place to start. After going 0 for 5 in Sunday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, he took advantage of the small lineup the Clippers employ to work the post and get himself going early. He scored 16 points in the first quarter.

And when Jeff Green got into early foul trouble, the Magic shifted Gordon to the 4 and he worked Brandon Bass off the dribble to continue his scoring onslaught.

Gordon’s first quarter was again another flash of Gordon’s versatility on the perimeter and in the post. He is still a work in progress and consistency is an issue. But slowly Gordon is becoming a player the Magic can rely on for energy, defense and scoring. Sometimes in bunches.

He finished with 28 points on 11-for-17 shooting. It did not matter what position he played, he played confidently and worked. The 3/4 debate will continue with Gordon. With games like this, it did not seem like he cared.

Injury also bred opportunity. Mario Hezonja finally got his chance. And largely made the most of it.

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He entered the game in the second quarter and immediately made a nice overhead pass to Bismack Biyombo for a dunk. He followed that up in his second half stint with a lob pass to Biyombo.

Hezonja’s playmaking is probably his most NBA-ready skill, and that seemed on full display. The Magic trusted him enough to give him some playmaking ability.

It felt a bit of one step forward and one step back with Hezonja. He would have his good plays and then would have a few bad ones. He missed all three of his shots and seemed eager to hoist them up — except one miss where he hesitated, allowing the defense to recover.

His defense was a bit rough too. He was certainly putting in the effort. That is never a question with Hezonja. But he also needs some more time to get comfortable. And he needs to avoid critical mistakes — such as fouling Jamal Crawford on a 3-pointer, an honest mistake.

Whether Hezonja will continue to get minutes with Ibaka likely to return is something left to Vogel once again. It is hard to say whether he did enough to earn another look. Hezonja got taken out of the game for C.J. Watson early in the fourth quarter after a few defensive mistakes.

And that is where the experimentation ended and the results, predictably were the same.

Gordon did not have the ball late in the game, despite all his success. D.J. Augustin, Nikola Vucevic and Evan Fournier got much of the late-game looks. Hezonja was back on the bench, perhaps ruining his opportunity.

More egregiously, Green continued to get minutes despite lethargic minutes and questionable plays. His mistakes seemed more glaring than Hezonja’s on the defensive end. He would get good position and make a good play and then give it up.

Green scored 10 points on 3-for-13 shooting, yet he was the one getting isolations on important possessions. When Gordon went out and Green replaced him, the Magic offense stagnated. When the Magic needed Green to deliver he failed to.

Yet the veteran continued to get opportunity. As he has throughout the season. Wednesday’s loss felt glaring with the mistakes he was making, more than normal perhaps.

For the Magic to get out of this losing streak and right their ship, it is going to take some risk. The old ways and rotations were not working. Orlando needs new blood or something different.

Magic fans are hankering for a trade just to change something and save that Playoff push. The last thing to try before settling on that outside source is trying some new within.

Injury gave the Magic a chance to do that. And what worked against the Clippers was what was new.

Starting Nikola Vucevic had its benefits after his strong offensive game against the Lakers. It has been coming for a while with Vucevic’s defensive improvements.

Moving Gordon around more and allowing him to float from the perimeter to the post has been a long time coming too. The Magic have done more and more of that.

Hezonja finally getting a chance after the team struggled so much was deserved and warranted. It deserves a second look Friday — whether Ibaka plays or not.

What did not work was what was old for the Magic. Going away from the hot hands of the evening and relying on players who were struggling throughout the evening. Continuing to run offense through Green and relying on his veteran savvy on defense.

None of these elements may have cost the Magic the game — the Magic struggled tagging DeAndre Jordan and keeping him off the glass and the Magic missed several open shots down the stretch despite good execution. But there was a renewed energy and focus.

Opportunity bred energy. Experimentation had its hiccups but also its newness kept the team focused.

Orlando tried something new and found some success. The team will wait to see whether it can copy that success again Friday.

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