The Orlando Magic Are…Interesting
From Cole Anthony’s sophomore year leap to Darius Garland’s elite play, I broke down everything that happened last night in the NBA.
Miami Heat (111) vs Utah Jazz (105)
This game wasn’t as close as it seems. The Heat completely dominated this game in all facets and the Jazz’s ill-fated 4th quarter run just made the game seem closer than it was.
But for 3 quarters, there were a lot of sour notes on the floor.
*Rimshot*
Miami Heat
The Heat looked great, again. Similar to the way they started the season, they played great on both sides of the ball. The 3-PT shooting, led by Duncan Robinson, was excellent. The defense was terrific for 3 quarters, smothering a lethal Utah offense.
After their recent struggles, it was a great statement win for Miami.
So…Maybe Duncan Robinson Can Shoot After All?
After their loss to the Clippers, I talked about Duncan Robinson’s shooting struggles. I talked about how Robinson needed to be better for Miami to succeed. Maybe he reads my articles after all.
Robinson finally got some shots to go down, making the Heat offense very dangerous. The Heat use Robinson a lot off-ball and he becomes so dangerous when he gets things going from outside.
Robinson caught fire in this game, perhaps kickstarting his season,
8/14 FG – 6/11 3-PT – 22 points – (+20) plus/minus
The Heat need consistent shooting from Robinson. Even when he’s not shooting well, defenses have to put a lot of effort into stopping him. But when he’s making shots? Defenses have to put even more of an effort, leaving other guys open.
So in short, when Duncan Robinson shoots well, good things happen.
The Miami Heat Are Makers of Chaos On Defense
The Heat’s stout defense has been one of the best in basketball this season. Their starting lineup, when healthy, features 4 incredibly good and versatile defenders. The Heat having good defense isn’t anything surprising.
But it still is fun to watch them smother teams on that end. It’s even more fun when they take the Jazz, an elite offense, completely out of rhythm. The Heat’s defense in the 3rd quarter last night was superb. Let’s highlight some of the great plays that they made.
In the 3rd quarter, the Jazz shot 35% from the field and committed 6 turnovers. It was one of the worst quarters the Jazz will play all season and it’s all because of Miami’s defense.
The Jazz’s first turnover of the game showcased how great Miami’s rotations are. The ball swung around the court a few times, but the Jazz couldn’t find anything open. Tyler Herro eventually got the steal.
The best part about this play is the Jazz have things open. Rudy Gobert is open and has smaller defenders around him. Duncan Robinson isn’t even guarding anyone. But the Heat were still able to force a turnover on this play.
The 2nd turnover is another great collective effort by Miami. Jordan Clarkson is on the left-wing and gets a screen. Dewayne Dedmond and Duncan Robinson both double-team him and Clarkson loses his dribble.
Robinson and Dedmond are going a great job pressuring the ball, but that leaves Hassan Whiteside, Dedmond’s man, open. Clarkson realizes this and throws to where Whiteside is. Enter Kyle Lowry.
Lowry, who is supposed to be guarding Bojan Bogdanovic in the corner, comes across the court to intercept the lazy pass. Now THAT is good defense.
The last Jazz turnover from the 3rd quarter I want to talk about is this one, another beautiful example of the Heat’s defense being very instinctive.
Donovan Mitchell gets a screen up top and again, the Heat blitz. Tucker and Dedmond surround Mitchell, which leaves Hassan Whiteside open.
So Gabe Vincent, who was all the way over in the right corner, comes over to take away the Whiteside pass. Mitchell is forced to pass to the corner.
Jordan Clarkson tries to shoot the ball, but a great closeout from Kyle Lowry stops him. Now stuck in the air, Clarkson tries to get the ball to Whiteside. Instead, Gabe Vincent fights his way around and gets the steal.
Chefs Kisses
When things are clicking, the Heat are one of the best teams in basketball. They just have to click more often for me to believe that they’re contenders.
Utah Jazz
The Jazz have lost two games in a row, at home. I am currently on Cloud-9.
The Jazz played horribly in this game. For 3 quarters, they were dominated in every facet of the game. Their offense was stagnant and they forgot how to rebound this thing called a basketball. It was not a good performance for Utah, who hasn’t looked great here recently.
I am still smiling if you couldn’t tell.
Rebounding
If I wanted to single out one poor thing the Jazz did in this game, it would have to be rebounding. Rebounding has not been a problem for the Jazz this season, but it has been in the last two games.
In the first 11 games of the season, the Jazz outrebounded their opponents by an average of 5.6 per game. That’s good. But in their last two games, both losses, the rebounding has been poor.
Against Indiana, the Pacers had 16 more rebounds than the Jazz. The Jazz allowed 15 offensive rebounds in that game. And last night against Miami, it was the same thing. The Jazz were outrebounded by 10, as Miami controlled the boards.
Miami had 13 offensive rebounds in this game and a lot of them were due to poor boxing out. PJ Tucker had 5 offensive rebounds in this game, mostly but just standing under the rim for the ball. The Jazz did a poor job boxing out, leading to a lot of 2nd chance opportunities for the Heat.
Allowing teams to get easy 2nd and 3rd opportunities isn’t a recipe for success. The good news for Utah is that they have been a good rebounding team this season, but they have to be a lot better than what they’ve shown in the last two games.
I’m still on Cloud-9, by the way.
The Orlando Magic Are Interesting
The Orlando Magic aren’t very good. We all know this, but I think that they have some exciting players. From Franz Wagner to Mo Bamba, there have been a lot of weird developments with this team. Some players are more impactful than you’d think and others haven’t been playing well.
Today, I will be looking at some of the weirdest things about the Orlando Magic.
The Starting Lineup Isn’t That Bad
The Magic have used the same starting lineup all season. Jalen Suggs, Cole Anthony, Mo Bamba, Franz Wagner, and Wendell Carter Jr. This lineup features some good scoring with Suggs and Anthony. Wagner is a good passer and defender. Both Bamba and Carter are versatile defenders who can stretch the floor.
It’s a pretty well-rounded starting 5 and the Magic have seen good results from this lineup.
Orlando Magic Starting 5 In 2022 (144 minutes)
106.3 ORtg
91.0 DRtg
15.4 NET Rating
The offense isn’t great or anything, but the defense has been surprisingly good with this unit. It’s always good for a young team to find continuity, so if this starting lineup works, don’t expect any changes to it from head coach Jamahl Mosley.
Cole Anthony Is Keeping The Offense Afloat
Cole Anthony is having a great season for the Magic. After an inconsistent rookie season, he has started to come into his own. He’s shooting 39% from 3 on nearly 8 attempts per game, which is leaps and bounds better than where he was last season.
He’s rebounding the ball incredibly well for a guard (6.9(nice) per game). He’s upped his assists and is overall having a great season. His great season is also keeping the Magic’s offense afloat.
Magic Offense W/ Cole Anthony: 109.5 ORtg
Magic Offense W/O Cole Anthony: 81.6 DRtg
That is a 27.9 rating differential when Anthony is on the floor and when he’s not. Talk about valuable, because the Magic desperately need Anthony on the floor to give them an offensive kick.
Wendell Carter Jr & Mo Bamba Are A Good Duo
Like we’ve already talked about, the Magic have been starting Mo Bamba and Wendell Carter Jr. together. It’s a very weird combo, but it has been working.
Carter is a more traditional center. He can shoot a little bit and is a pretty solid all-around player. Mo Bamba, on the other hand, is far from traditional.
Bamba is a 7-footer who can move around like a guard. He’s long and lanky and a good shooter from the perimeter. For the first time in his career, he’s being developed. And he’s having a really good season, one that should earn him a contract somewhere.
The two of these guys together have been far from bad while playing together, making them one of the weirdest duos in the NBA.
Bamba and Carter In 2022 (246 minutes)
100.6 ORtg
102.6 DRtg
-2.0 NET Rating
The offense isn’t great, but when these two guys are on the floor, the defense is superb. I think that Carter is living up to that contract he got this offseason and Bamba is playing himself into a new contract. Both of these guys are playing well and they are certainly a very fun pairing to watch.
Darius Garland & Evan Mobley Demand Your Attention
This Cavaliers vs Celtics game was crazy. The Cavaliers came back from a 19-point deficit in the 2nd half to beat Boston. While the end to that game would have been crazy enough to talk about, I want to talk about Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.
Garland is, in my opinion, the Cavaliers’ best player. Mobley is on the rise to be one of the best centers in the NBA. These two guys were excellent in this game and I think that they are going to have two great seasons, respectively.
Darius Garland
After a fantastic 2021 campaign, Darius Garland’s encore 2022 season is off to a great start. Garland is a three-level scorer who is the Cavs’ main facilitator. While Collin Sexton gets most of the national attention, Garland is by far the better player. And with Sexton out for the foreseeable future with a knee injury? You know what that means…
IT’S DARIUS GARLAND SZN
And Darius Garland also acknowledges that it is his time. In the 4 games without Sexton on the floor, Garland has been superb.
19.5 points – 5.5 assists – 1.3 steals – 63% TS – 41% 3-PT
Garland has been doing it all and I was very impressed with what I saw from him against Boston.
While Garland isn’t thought to be a great scorer, he is. His combination of shooting, handles, and quickness make him a deceptively good scorer. In this game, he was 7/15 from the field and finished with 22 points.
Garland’s first bucket of the night was really pretty. Coming off of a Jarrett Allen screen, Garland knifed into the lane. He avoided a Jayson Tatum swipe from the help and shot the ball high off the glass, avoiding both Grant and Robert Williams in the process.
In transition, Garland was guarded by Grant Williams. With the mismatch, Garland made a sweet crossover move, sending Williams a few feet backward. Garland then got the shooter’s bounce on the free-throw line jump shot.
Garland’s playmaking was also quite good in this game. He had 6 assists in this game, but one of them was the dimes of all dimes.
Late in the shot-clock, Garland had the ball on the left-wing. Garland, suddenly, fired a left-hand pass inside to Jarrett Allen. And Allen wasn’t wide open, Marcus Smart came from the weak side, but the pass was on the money and Allen scored.
Darius Garland is the Cavs’ franchise player. He’s been more efficient this season and when he’s on the floor, the Cavs are a different team. The combo of him and Mobley + Allen is great and I think that Garland can be a player they build around for the future.
Evan Mobley (4th Quarter Edition)
Evan Mobley is (spoiler alert) the rookie of the year frontrunner through one month of action. The 7-foot unicorn from USC has been a dominant force on both ends of the floor for the Cavs. But in the 4th quarter of this game, Evan Mobley unleashed god mode upon the Boston Celtics.
On both ends of the floor, Mobley was a force to be reckoned with and was a major reason as to why the Cavs won this game. Let’s break down Mobley’s incredible 4th quarter.
Offensively, Mobley was poised and efficient. He shot 5/7 from the field, including a few shots that centers shouldn’t be making. He had a baseline fadeaway jump shot, a 21-foot pull-up jump shot, and a nice post move against Jayson Tatum to tie the game late.
Mobley’s game is so unique and refined. Even with his lack of brute strength, he’s been superb offensively this season. His jump shot is a problem for defenses, as they struggle to pull their center out of the paint to deal with him. He is just solid on this end of the floor.
Defensively, Mobley continued his brilliance. He had 2 blocks and a steal in the 4th quarter alone. His first block was a great recovery on Dennis Schroder, who tried to shoot a fadeaway jumper over him (not a good idea).
Mobley’s 2nd block? Now that was something else. After a miss, Jayson Tatum was running the floor. Mobley was behind him all the way, but closing fast. Tatum got right to the rim and it seemed like an easy dunk for the All-Star.
Instead, Mobley tracked him down, Lebron-style, for the block. It was incredible.
Yes, Rob, Mobley is everywhere at all times. But the sensational rookie still wasn’t done.
In a tie game late in the 4th quarter, Mobley was on an island with Tatum on the perimeter. Tatum, with the shot-clock winding down, threw up a step-back 3.
Mobley, with his inhuman reach and recovery, made a great contest, and Tatum air-balled the shot. Most centers can’t smother an elite scorer like Jayson Tatum.
Mobley has also been good this season at forcing turnovers by just getting in the way. While he might not get credit for the turnover, he plays a big part as to why the turnover happened. This sort of thing happened twice in his beautiful 4th quarter.
Mobley was guarding the incredibly quick and elusive Dennis Schroder on the perimeter. Schroder drove down the lane and Mobley stayed with him. Schroder just kind of lost the ball, which I’m sure most other players would do if Mobley was breathing down their necks.
Finally, Jayson Tatum was coming off of a screen on the left-wing. Mobley stepped up to meet him and walled him off perfectly. Tatum then tried to pass it cross-court to Langford, but Cedi Osman intercepted it. Another great play by Mobley.
Evan Mobley is good.
What Are Your Thoughts From Last Night’s Games? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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