National Basketball Association

Orlando Magic shooting for the moon, expecting Playoffs and more

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The Orlando Magic are not hiding from their expectations and their goals as training camp begins. The Playoffs are more than words for this team in 2017.

There was a new vibe around the Amway Center for the Orlando Magic’s media day before training camp Monday.

The team had hit something of a reset button — or perhaps an accelerant — on their rebuild. The team was not sitting around anymore to wait for the young players to develop.

This was an older, more experienced team. But also a promising and energetic one. The Magic had undergone change and that change had brought about renewed energy and expectation to the new season.

Unlike other media days where there was a dogged determined face to the Magic, hoping this would be the year the team takes the next step but expected perhaps only the nebulous progress, this was a team that had certainty. Or, if not certainty, a confidence and a belief this would be the year for a reason beyond their inevitable growth.

The Magic had established players and players expected to grow. They had a coach with a proven track record of success and identity building.

There was no dancing around the obvious goal in the room. The team, the players, the coaches would all say it freely like it was self evident. The goal itself is self evident. The belief the team has should be too. Whether outsiders are ready to buy in is another question.

“We are a playoff team on paper,” Serge Ibaka said. “Now we have to work for. It’s not going to be easy. Right now, that is my mentality. Everyone is thinking the same way. We have to make the Playoffs this year.”

The Magic believe they are a Playoff team. And nothing less than that would make the season a success.

Certainly the national media disagrees with that notion. There is not a lot of belief outside the locker room. But there it is plain to see as the talk for the team heading into training camp on their media day.

There is no avoiding that goal. The Magic aim to make the Playoffs.

“I don’t think that’s a secret,” Evan Fournier said. “We want to go back to the Playoffs. If we don’t, it will be a bust. We will do everything we can. It’s not going to be easy, of course. It’s going to be a good challenge.”

More importantly, many players on the roster believe they will make the Playoffs and have the roster to do so.

Especially some of the newer players.

Fournier said the difference between this year and last year, when the Magic also had a Playoff-or-bust mentality, is that roster. There is more depth and veteran leadership on the roster. He said having players like Ibaka and Biyombo who have gone deep in the Playoffs before will help the team.

There is no doubt adding veterans was an important part of the Magic’s formula this offseason. They wanted to get a little more Playoff experience to help push the young players to a higher level. A player like Ibaka has been deep in the Playoffs and has a lot of experience to share.

The enthusiasm and excitement about this opportunity joining a new team was oozing off him as he finished out his day speaking to the gathered media.

But it was easy to see that enthusiasm throughout the roster too. There is a real sense the team could put together something special this season. Especially on the defensive end where the team know it has a ton of defensive talent and the potential to build a top-five defense.

That belief pervaded the roster. And it was clear that was their ticket to get into that Playoff conversation.

“I think it’s important we become a good defensive team,” Nikola Vucevic said. “For us, we don’t really have the type of team that is going to go out there and score 100-120 points per game. We have to defend. That’s the only way I think we can win on regular basis.”

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To get there, the Magic will have to build chemistry quickly. That too was a consistent theme for a roster with seven new faces. The roster is entirely new and learning an entirely new coaching staff.

Ibaka though said getting to know and like his teammates was very easy. The group was very welcoming. And, more importantly, they are hungry for success.

There is tons of opportunity for many of the players on the roster. There is undoubtedly a lot for several individual players with something to prove.

This is not the time for lowering or hiding from expectations. And the Magic are not going to do that.

“Raise the bar,” coach Frank Vogel said of the Magic’s expectations this year. “Set the bar high. We’re going to be a team that has a shoot for the moon mentality, a dream-big mentality and set that bar high and work our tails off to achieve those goals.”

Frank Vogel, in setting up his approach and his philosophy is not going to hide from this long-term goal. Vogel will rely heavily on his experience with the Indiana Pacers to build something similar.

That means there will be a long road ahead and a lot of hard work to build that defensive reputation. The work on that process begins Tuesday with the team’s first practice. It will mean a lot of learning and instruction.

The goal though is very clear and very set. And no one is hiding from it. It is a public standard now.

And the Magic will make no excuses for failing, it would seem.

“We have the pieces,” Aaron Gordon said. “We have guys that have been to the finals — Eastern Finals, NBA Finals and the Playoffs. We have everything that we need. It’s time to put it together. It’s time for the Orlando Magic to be back in the Playoffs.”

And after four years outside the Playoff picture, the Magic seem more determined than ever to make this goal a reality and not just preseason hype and talk.

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