National Basketball Association

Orlando Magic Power Rankings Roundup: Reasons to believe?

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 9:50 p.m. ET

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

The Orlando Magic are one of the bigger teases in the league. They are not a good team, but keep giving flashes of what could make them great.

It has felt like the Orlando Magic’s season has been on life support for some time. Or, if not on life support than in need of an ambulance to get resuscitated.

And things seemed to reached a low point as that fateful six-game road trip came to an end in New Orleans. Back-to-back poor, energy-less performances had the team asking big questions of itself. The issue of the team’s inconsistent effort and energy were front and center.

Big words were spoken and the team needed and demanded action.

Friday delivered that action. The Magic turned in their best defensive performance in approximately a month and routed the Milwaukee Bucks. it was the kind of game that provided some hope that there is still a corner they can turn.

The Golden State Warriors provide a nice dose of reality. But even then the Magic had their moments.

The question is whether anyone can believe these moments from this team. Can they string them together enough to pick up some wins?

The Magic, after all, are not out of the Playoff race. Not completely at least. They trail the final Playoff spot by 4.5 games and there are quite a few teams to climb over.

This difficult, road-heavy January is almost over. Orlando plays its final of five home games in January on Tuesday against the struggling Chicago Bulls. The Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors are upcoming. Both those Playoff teams are struggling at the moment. And then things close off with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

It is easy to gain some optimism and start thinking ahead some. Only if this team could build some momentum.

Orlando has done some good things in the last few weeks. But not all at once. And not every game. That has been the story for the season. And that is why it still seems like the Magic are sinking in the weekly power rankings.

Jeremy Woo, Sports Illustrated

Golden State Warriors

(38-6)

Last week: 4-0 recordLast rank: 1st

Since losing to the Cavs on Christmas, the Warriors are 11–1, and this week’s convincing wins over Cleveland, Oklahoma City and Houston served plenty of notice. They’ve now won seven straight with an average victory margin of 19.4 points. 27

Dallas Mavericks

(15-29)

Last week: 2-2 recordLast rank: 26th

Harrison Barnes, reputation redeemed, as he recently scored in single-digits for the first time this season. And that was because, yes, the Mavs dropped the Lakers by 49. Remember when the Western Conference was super fun?28

Orlando Magic

(18-28)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 27th

Orlando’s now just 2–9 in January, Evan Fournier has missed five straight games, and they’re only a game up on the Sixers in the conference standings. So…that’s massively disappointing.29

Los Angeles Lakers

(16-32)

Last week: 1-2 recordLast rank: 28th

Things did seem to go from bad to worse for the Orlando Magic this week with Evan Fournier’s injury popping up again — he remains questionable. Then Jodie Meeks dislocated his thumb and now D.J. Augustin sprained his ankle. The Magic are very thin on the wing and at the guard.

And the Magic were struggling there already.

Orlando still feels like it can turn the corner. But the time is running out very quickly. And the injuries are not helping matters at all.

Marc Stein, ESPN.com

Golden State Warriors

(38-6)

Last week: 4-0 recordLast rank: 1st

As recently as Thanksgiving, Golden State ranked 15th in the league in defensive efficiency. Now? The Dubs are No. 1 leaguewide in offensive and defensive efficiency, which is a monumental double that no team has pulled off over an entire season since Michael Jordan‘s 72-win Bulls of 1995-96. The Warriors’ response to their recent well-chronicled collapse at home to Memphis couldn’t be much more emphatic — they’re up to seven consecutive wins with an average victory margin of 19.4 PPG. Meanwhile, Golden State’s average nightly margin of plus-13.1, if it holds, would represent a single-season league record.26

New York Knicks

(19-26)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 26th

Who else feels for Carmelo Anthony? The Committee honestly does. Poor Melo had a 25-point quarter last week against Washington, still ranks as a top-20 scorer in this league and couldn’t even crack the Toughest Omissions list assembled by yours truly when choosing our All-Star reserves over the weekend. It’s tough to dispute Melo’s contention that he gets all the blame when things are going sour for the Knicks, who have been forced to play six games this month without Kristaps Porzingis and just lost their past three home games by a combined six points to Atlanta, Washington and Phoenix. You’ll recall that, early in the season, these same Knicks who’ve dropped 13 of 16 were winning all those games at home against the teams they should beat as part of an 11-4 start at Madison Square Garden. Melo, for the record, has made seven straight All-Star teams since being snubbed in 2009.27

Orlando Magic

(18-28)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 28th

Sunday’s assignment in Orlando, with what essentially was a 9 a.m. tipoff time for a group of Warriors who had been on the road for only three nights to that point, always struck me as perhaps the toughest assignment of Golden State’s brutal schedule last week. It was the first time that the Warriors were forced to start a game at noon Eastern time since March 1995 — also in the Magic Kingdom — and it looked as though the hosts might really be able to take advantage. Or so it appeared for a good quarter and a half. The Magic eventually couldn’t cope with the Warriors’ traditional third-quarter eruption and slumped to 1-4 since Orlando’s nice win in Portland on Jan. 13.28

Sacramento Kings

(16-27)

Last week: 0-3 recordLast rank: 20th

The Orlando Magic clearly had some advantages with Sunday’s noon start for the Golden State Warriors. The Magic took a 10-point lead in the first half and took advantage of some of the Warriors’ turnover problems.

Alas, Golden State proved too much in the third quarter. That is what that team does. The Warriors make a defense pay for every mistake. No mater the time.

It probably does not help the Miami Heat picked off the Warriors the next night.

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

Kurt Helin, Pro Basketball Talk

Golden State Warriors

(38-6)

Last week: 4-0 recordLast rank: 1st

This was supposed to be a rough week, a test of the Golden State’s toughness — then they went out and beat the Cavaliers by 35, the Thunder by 21, and Rockets by 17. Golden State now has the top rated offense AND defense in the NBA for the season. And as much as they aren’t trying, they are on pace to win 70 games. So yes, they have set the bar to clear this season, again. Five of their next seven games are on the road.27

Miami Heat

(14-30)

Last week: 3-0 recordLast rank: 29th

They are on a three game winning streak, and it speaks to where the Heat are that all that does is make me wonder if it helps Goran Dragic’s trade value (he had a strong game against the Rockets 21/8/8). Or, to better phrase the question, will it drive up the trade value to what Pat Riley thinks he should get? Dion Waiters dropped 33 last week in a win, just wanted to point that out.28

Orlando Magic

(18-28)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 24th

This team’s offense (already not striking fear into teams) stumbles badly without Evan Fournier in to provide spacing. Orlando can sell they are just 4.5 games out of the playoffs, but we all know they are not making it and need to make moves at the trade deadline thinking long term (such as unclogging the front court logjam).29

Los Angeles Lakers

(16-31)

Last week: 1-2 recordLast rank: 28th

The Orlando Magic’s offense has been as bad as expected. The team is 29th in the league in offensive rating so far this season. And even when it seems it is doing fine, it is not. It is still really bad.

Losing Evan Fournier should only make it worse.

But with Fournier off the floor, the Magic post a 102.1 offensive rating. That is not good, but better than the team averages. It is still hard to say the Magic are better with Fournier out there. And certainly, they are not better without both Fournier and Meeks.

Matt Moore, CBS Sports

Golden State Warriors

(38-7)

Last week: 4-0 recordLast rank: 1st

After starting the year 0-5 against the Spurs, Rockets, Grizzlies and Cavs, the Warriors have gotten two dominant revenge wins along with another beatdown of the Thunder. They are clicking on all cylinders and Steph Curry is back to inviting fits of glee among the millennial League Pass hordes. They are everything people hoped — or feared — they would be.24

Sacramento Kings

(17-27)

Last week: 0-3 recordLast rank: 22nd

Yes, the call on Dwyane Wade was terrible in the loss to the Bulls. But focusing on the call ignores that they lost a lead to a team struggling, and that DeMarcus Cousins was outright stripped on that play. The Kings’ problems are not the officials. Their problem is that they are too often in a position for a bad call to ruin their chances of a win.25

Orlando Magic

(18-28)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 19th

Orlando is currently defined as the team that if you lose to, you start to question everything about your season. They transport you to the darkest timeline.26

New York Knicks

(20-26)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 23rd

The description of the Orlando Magic here is absolutely correct. It seems losing to the Orlando Magic makes every team question themselves.

After defeating the Portland Trail Blazers the “Blazers are not that good” drum got beat louder. Their win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday prompted a team meeting that somehow ended with Jabari Parker getting benched when he talked about it to the media.

Things are fine. And the irony, of course, is the Magic are probably in their darkest timeline for how this season has gone.

John Schuhmann, NBA.com

Golden State Warriors

(38-6)

Last week: 4-0 recordLast rank: 1st

After flattening two other MVP candidates earlier in the week, the Warriors took it easy on James Harden on Friday, though they allowed him only 13 shots and five free throws in 35 minutes. In their last three games, they’ve outscored the Thunder, Rockets and Magic 116-68 in the third quarter, pushing their third-quarter NetRtg to plus-23.0 points per 100 possessions, which (over a full season) would be the best mark for any team in any quarter in the last 20 years. Their upcoming schedule got a little less interesting with Chris Paul‘s injury, as they’re playing the Clippers three times in the next month.26

Dallas Mavericks

(15-29)

Last week: 2-2 recordLast rank: 26th

The Mavs are 4-2 with a starting lineup of Deron Williams, Seth Curry, Wesley Matthews, Harrison Barnes and Dirk Nowitzki, and the two losses could have easily gone the other way. It’s been their best offensive stretch of the season (111.6 points scored per 100 possessions), Curry has shot 14-for-25 from 3-point range in the six games, and the Mavs have scored more than 109 points per 100 possessions in 428 minutes with he and Williams on the floor together this year. Somehow, they’re only three games in the loss column behind the eighth-place Nuggets.27

Orlando Magic

(18-28)

Last week: 1-3 recordLast rank: 23rd

It’s a good night when you outscore the Bucks by 22 points in the paint, as the Magic did on Friday. But their offense hasn’t been able to hold up without Evan Fournier, their defense hasn’t been able to stop some of the league’s best offenses over the last nine days, and they even allowed New Orleans to have one of its best offensive games of the season on Wednesday. Fournier’s absence has allowed Mario Hezonja to get double-digit minutes in four straight games for the first time since early November.28

Phoenix Suns

(15-29)

Last week: 2-2 recordLast rank: 27th

The Evan Fournier injury has indeed thrown the Orlando Magic for a bit of a loop. As noted earlier, the Magic’s offense is not very good with or without Fournier.

In the few games since Fournier went out again, the Magic have had to watch for lapses of focus. When they rely too much on one-on-one basketball and let go of the rope defensively, the team can get embarrassed — Golden State Warriors or not.

The Magic are hoping to get a bit more from Mario Hezonja. But relying on him and C.J. Watson is not a good long-term solution.

Gerald Bourguet, Hoops Habit

Golden State Warriors

(38-6)

Last week: 6-0 recordLast rank: 1st

What a phenomenal couple of weeks for the Golden State Warriors. Not only do they have the league’s best record and best point differential, but they now own the title of the league’s best offense AND best defense.27

Miami Heat

(14-30)

Last week: 3-2 recordLast rank: 29th

Nice three-game winning streak to close the week for the Miami Heat, who have to be loving the way Goran Dragic is raising his trade value after a 21-8-8 line in a win over the Rockets, 32 against the Mavs and 25 more in a win over Milwaukee.28

Orlando Magic

(18-28)

Last week: 1-4 recordLast rank: 21st

Elfrid Payton and Aaron Gordon are looking more like franchise cornerstones finally, but it’s blatantly obvious they’re going to need help. It’s time to go back to the drawing board.

Los Angeles Lakers

(16-32)

Last week: 1-6 recordLast rank: 22nd

Just about everyone who has an interest in the long-term future of the Orlando Magic recognize it is time for the Magic to reinvest in their young players and build around them rather than smushing together veterans to squeeze out the eighth seed.

Aaron Gordon and Elfrid Payton have played significantly better lately. That may not mean they are stars in the making, but it certainly means the team should work to complement their skills.

Rebuilding the Magic will be very tricky.