Orlando Magic at Raptors: Preview & 3 keys to victory
By Brian Boake
The youthful Orlando Magic are reduced to the role of spoiler, but they are still capable of beating the Raptors.
The season so far for the Toronto Raptors has been happily free of overly busy weeks – until this one. The Raptors play their fifth game in seven nights when they face the Orlando Magic at the Air Canada Centre.
If we toss out the disappointing loss to the Chicago Bulls, the Raptors have responded well to the extra workload. All three victories since have seen our team hold its opponents to under a hundred points.
The Orlando Magic are playing out the string at this point; their 29-39 record provides a mathematical but not a realistic shot at post-season play. They aren’t as banged up as some teams, but without scoring centre Nikola Vucevic, they struggle to score inside. Dewayne Dedmon, who’s spent more time in the D-League than the NBA, is listed at centre. He doesn’t have the speed or reaction time to hold a job, though he’ll make a few plays and put in an effort under his own rim.
If the Magic are going to be troublesome, it will be by making a bunch of outside shots. Victor Oladipo, a speedy and gifted combo guard, certainly managed that against the Cavaliers on Friday night, pouring in 45 points. That performance included 6 of 7 from deep, so he’ll bear major attention. Brandon Jennings starts at point guard, which goes against coach Scott Skiles’ grain, I’m sure. Jennings is wildly inconsistent, a shoot-first (and miss a lot) examplar of a career in reverse. He averaged over 19 points per game four years ago, and 7.8 this.
At small foward, Evan Fournier was drafted by Masai Ujiri in Denver, then moved too cheaply and too quickly to the Magic Kingdom. This guy can shoot, and make, from anywhere.
Aaron Gordon, a highly athletic power forward, hasn’t enough experience to be an impact player. Give him 3 seasons, and a point guard who gets him the ball, and he will be a force.
The Orlando bench includes rookie swingman Mario Hezonja, whom they’ll have to find a spot for in future. Ersan Ilyasova is strictly a back up now. He can defend power forwards and hit the occasional 3-ball. Elfrid (Crazy Hair) Payton is questionable with an elbow injury. I don’t get the buzz about him, but he’s still young and made find a shooting stroke eventually. Shabazz Napier is another beardless youth we’ll be hearing about.
The Raptors are hurting. Patrick Patterson and James Johnson are both questionable; I’d wager they will dress but not play. Jonas Valanciunas is not listed on the injury report, so he may be a game-time decision.
Hopefully, the remaining healthy Raptors can pull out a victory. It’s certainly within reach if they…:
- …get another strong effort from Norman Powell. He must smother Oladipo, and force him into the path of Bismack Biyombo under the hoop.
- …push the ball deep on offense. Luis Scola should have his chances, just like he did in Q1 against Boston. Dribble-drives by our guards should be effective, as their rim protection is questionable. The Raptors are third-best in the NBA at drawing fouls, while the Magic are third-worst. That difference is almost 4 extra trips to the line per game.
- …run the Magic off the 3-point line. Raptors opponents make 37.3% of their 3-point tries, which is the second-worst mark in the league. Fortunately, our team doesn’t allow that many attempts, or we’d lose a lot more games. The Magic can’t do much inside.
Get an early lead, and don’t let them back in the game. Even short-handed, it can be done. Toronto 109-Orlando 99.