*Zach Lowe:* “While we are here, yeah, can we at least have a little bit of an ode to the 12-5 Orlando Magic, who deserve at least like a nod? We don’t, none of us think—I don’t think—that they’re going to be a top-three team in the East and certainly a top-three Championship Finals threat in the East. But is there anything you would like to say while we are here about the Orlando Magic, who are currently 15th in offense, which for them is like first, given that they have not been in the top 20, Doris? They have not ranked 20th or better in 11 straight seasons in offense, so that’s a party. Third in defense and fifth in net rating. So, give me a little love letter to the Magic.
—
*Doris:* So first and foremost, for a young group, there’s an edge and a toughness to this group that I absolutely love. Jamahl Mosley, I think, has talked about this in an article about —
—
#Zach Lowe: **Jamahl Mosley, 17 games in, Coach of the Year open and shut, no question about it.**
—
*Burke*: **Absolutely.** in the article, he was talking about sort of this is a group that plays for one another. No one is worried about Paolo is player of the week in the East. His numbers are absolutely sensational. I love the jump he’s made. He’s taking fewer threes, but he goes from under 30%—a shade under—to 43% from three. They obviously don’t have enough shooting. His only concerning number is his free throws, which have gone from 73 to 65 (percent).There’s just a cohesion, a toughness. You know, when you’re a young team, if you know who you are and how you win, which is dominate the paint on both ends, guard your backside off, I love Cole Anthony and his confidence. The more they win, the more chances I get to see him in a postgame interview, which just is an absolute delight.
—
*Lowe*: Well, well, spoiler alert, you might get to hear him on the Lowe Post podcast this week. And I’ve been primed for just, be ready for anything. Just be ready for—it could go in any direction. **So Cole Anthony and the Magic, let’s make this happen, please. Let’s nail this down.**
—
*Burke:* Yeah, I just—I love the team, and I love the progress. And I know you’ve talked about their announcer team in the past. How over the years, obviously, lack of success, **their broadcasts were entertaining, insightful, and fun,** and it is just nice when a team that has not done a lot of winning is 12 and 5 and on a seven-game win streak. I don’t care who was on the floor or not – win over the Celtics, dominant win over the Nuggets, legit progress. It’s exciting.
—
Lowe: They’ve played a decent schedule, and as I’ve said before, there’s nothing in the numbers in terms of opponent shooting or anything that says their defense is even a little bit fluky. Like, their defense is legit.
Please continue if you have more love letters.
—
Burke: No, I’d like to know where you think ultimately they land in the standings in the East. In your mind, do you have—and I’m not saying like pinpoint it exactly—but where do you see them given what you’ve seen to this point?
—
Lowe: Yeah, I think, you know, clearly, we both agree that the top three, at least in terms of regular season record, should be Boston, Milwaukee, Philly. So that leaves you three spots to avoid the play-in, and just given that, as fantastic as the Magic have been, they have not opened that much distance over New York, Cleveland, Miami—teams that have a little bit more pedigree than they do. I would say fifth to eight, sixth to eightth seems realistic. Which, by the way, home run for the Magic.
When you ask executives and agents around the league who are the most exciting teams to think about over the next three to four-year windows, Oklahoma City is the first name mentioned for obvious reasons. Orlando comes up all the time because they actually have some free agency appeal in terms of Florida and weather and like a history of getting at least in the door with people when they’re good. And they have extra picks. They have all their own picks. They’ve got infinite salary cap space, and they have two legit tent-pole players in Banchero and Wagner at the hardest and most important positions to fill on the wing and then the big forward spot. Can I give a little love letter to the Magic? So I’ve been watching almost all their recent games because it’s gotten to the point where it’s like I’ve got to figure out a little bit more carefully what’s actually happening here because they’re doing this without Fultz and without Wendell Carter Jr. and two starters**
—
*Burke:* **Jonathan Isaac**, who I have loved and have so hoped would stay healthy because I think you see some things. **He’s just like a pterodactyl** in terms of the size and length and the things he can do. Tatum couldn’t get away from him in that game. I just think as a defensive stopper, look out. And he’s such a good young, team-oriented guy and all those things. So you hope that young man can stay healthy. So continue your love letter.
—
*Lowe:* So the number one thing is people, sort of generically, they play so hard, they play hard, they try hard. What does that mean? And some of that means like everybody, without exception, plays defense. That goes for Banchero and Wagner and everybody else. Stars play defense. Everybody plays defense. But what it also means is like they do everything fast and hard. And I mean, like, watch Jalen Suggs cut in the half-court on offense. Watch him come to the ball. Watch him cut back door. Watch them set screens. It’s like full blast all the time. And I think Suggs, more than any player on the team, aside from the coaching staff and Mosley, sets that tone of we’re going to do everything hard and with full effort, speed, and it’s gonna hurt. Like, you’re gonna hurt when you play against us. And you’re gonna have to really chase us hard, and eventually, we’re gonna wear your asses down because we’re going to be relentless about it.
That’s one thing. And some of, like, beyond Suggs and Cole Anthony, who we’ve mentioned, Goga Bitadze and Mo Wagner are just absolutely killing it at backup center and now starting center. Goga’s been promoted from third string to starter without Wendell Carter. And like, you’re talking about a guy who, two guys who have been out of NBA rotations for portions of – or in Goga’s case – the majority of his career. Goga comes in the NBA for the Pacers as a stretch five. He’s gonna shoot threes, blah, blah, blah. Orlando has said, how about we go the other way and you just kick everyone’s ass inside, get every offensive rebound, and just be big and tall defensively and active. A+ for Goga .
and Mo Wagner…**First of all, the fact that they play Joe Ingles and Mo Wagner together, and there’s not a fight in every single game, is a minor miracle.** Honestly, great theater. Every free throw rebound when Mo Wagner is in the game. Like some people just sort of, like they don’t go for it, particularly when they’re on the offensive team, so they don’t have inside position. They’re just going back. Mo Wagner is like playing rugby on every single free throw. It’s just, it’s like everyone is in Game Seven of the Finals, and there’s a minute left in the game, yeah, and he’s making shots. He’s had like multiple 20-point games. Those guys, plus Ingles, are the unsung heroes of what’s going on in Orlando. This is going to be a legit good team. They’re going to fade down, I think, a little bit from 12 and five, but they’re not going anywhere, and they’re a blast to watch. Like, they just play so fast and with—it’s been fun.
Um, are you ready for question number two, or do you want to say more?
—
*Burke*: I just say one little follow-up because I think it’s always like an underrated sign of the vibe of the team. You’re just talking about cutting, right? And when a team is willing to cut that hard when they know that the ball is not coming to them, it opens up so much for the people around you. And again, it’s just, to me, it speaks to who they are and how they feel about one another and how hard they’re playing for one another. And to your point about offensive rebound, they’re first in second chance points, and all those little things matter. Um, so yeah, I’m ready for question two.
Lowe: Alright, well, they’re first in shots at the Rim, they’re first in free throw rate, they’re top five in offensive rebounding. They have just embraced this identity of not only playing hard but ‘we’re going to kick your butt at the basket.’ We’re winning the most important real estate in the game on both ends of the floor…
— Grammarlessness to English done by ChatGPT
CallMeKerm
Great clip, it’s always exciting when the national media shows us a little love and especially exciting when it’s one of a handful that actually understand and discuss the game as opposed to spouting off sensationalist hot takes.
I’ve always like Mose but wasn’t sure if he could graduate from being a player’s coach to a guy who also wasn’t out of his element tactically against some of the better coaches in the league. We have a long way to go, but this year has been promising. His rotations especially have been excellent and he seems to be a lot more active on the sideline this season.
I also loved the little acknowledgement that Orlando has actually shown they could be players in FA when they have a competitive team. It seems to be a common misconception amongst NBA fans, especially on reddit, that players would rather die than come play for Orlando. No, we’ve just sucked for the better part of a decade. Lol
2 Comments
*Zach Lowe:* “While we are here, yeah, can we at least have a little bit of an ode to the 12-5 Orlando Magic, who deserve at least like a nod? We don’t, none of us think—I don’t think—that they’re going to be a top-three team in the East and certainly a top-three Championship Finals threat in the East. But is there anything you would like to say while we are here about the Orlando Magic, who are currently 15th in offense, which for them is like first, given that they have not been in the top 20, Doris? They have not ranked 20th or better in 11 straight seasons in offense, so that’s a party. Third in defense and fifth in net rating. So, give me a little love letter to the Magic.
—
*Doris:* So first and foremost, for a young group, there’s an edge and a toughness to this group that I absolutely love. Jamahl Mosley, I think, has talked about this in an article about —
—
#Zach Lowe: **Jamahl Mosley, 17 games in, Coach of the Year open and shut, no question about it.**
—
*Burke*: **Absolutely.** in the article, he was talking about sort of this is a group that plays for one another. No one is worried about Paolo is player of the week in the East. His numbers are absolutely sensational. I love the jump he’s made. He’s taking fewer threes, but he goes from under 30%—a shade under—to 43% from three. They obviously don’t have enough shooting. His only concerning number is his free throws, which have gone from 73 to 65 (percent).There’s just a cohesion, a toughness. You know, when you’re a young team, if you know who you are and how you win, which is dominate the paint on both ends, guard your backside off, I love Cole Anthony and his confidence. The more they win, the more chances I get to see him in a postgame interview, which just is an absolute delight.
—
*Lowe*: Well, well, spoiler alert, you might get to hear him on the Lowe Post podcast this week. And I’ve been primed for just, be ready for anything. Just be ready for—it could go in any direction. **So Cole Anthony and the Magic, let’s make this happen, please. Let’s nail this down.**
—
*Burke:* Yeah, I just—I love the team, and I love the progress. And I know you’ve talked about their announcer team in the past. How over the years, obviously, lack of success, **their broadcasts were entertaining, insightful, and fun,** and it is just nice when a team that has not done a lot of winning is 12 and 5 and on a seven-game win streak. I don’t care who was on the floor or not – win over the Celtics, dominant win over the Nuggets, legit progress. It’s exciting.
—
Lowe: They’ve played a decent schedule, and as I’ve said before, there’s nothing in the numbers in terms of opponent shooting or anything that says their defense is even a little bit fluky. Like, their defense is legit.
Please continue if you have more love letters.
—
Burke: No, I’d like to know where you think ultimately they land in the standings in the East. In your mind, do you have—and I’m not saying like pinpoint it exactly—but where do you see them given what you’ve seen to this point?
—
Lowe: Yeah, I think, you know, clearly, we both agree that the top three, at least in terms of regular season record, should be Boston, Milwaukee, Philly. So that leaves you three spots to avoid the play-in, and just given that, as fantastic as the Magic have been, they have not opened that much distance over New York, Cleveland, Miami—teams that have a little bit more pedigree than they do. I would say fifth to eight, sixth to eightth seems realistic. Which, by the way, home run for the Magic.
When you ask executives and agents around the league who are the most exciting teams to think about over the next three to four-year windows, Oklahoma City is the first name mentioned for obvious reasons. Orlando comes up all the time because they actually have some free agency appeal in terms of Florida and weather and like a history of getting at least in the door with people when they’re good. And they have extra picks. They have all their own picks. They’ve got infinite salary cap space, and they have two legit tent-pole players in Banchero and Wagner at the hardest and most important positions to fill on the wing and then the big forward spot. Can I give a little love letter to the Magic? So I’ve been watching almost all their recent games because it’s gotten to the point where it’s like I’ve got to figure out a little bit more carefully what’s actually happening here because they’re doing this without Fultz and without Wendell Carter Jr. and two starters**
—
*Burke:* **Jonathan Isaac**, who I have loved and have so hoped would stay healthy because I think you see some things. **He’s just like a pterodactyl** in terms of the size and length and the things he can do. Tatum couldn’t get away from him in that game. I just think as a defensive stopper, look out. And he’s such a good young, team-oriented guy and all those things. So you hope that young man can stay healthy. So continue your love letter.
—
*Lowe:* So the number one thing is people, sort of generically, they play so hard, they play hard, they try hard. What does that mean? And some of that means like everybody, without exception, plays defense. That goes for Banchero and Wagner and everybody else. Stars play defense. Everybody plays defense. But what it also means is like they do everything fast and hard. And I mean, like, watch Jalen Suggs cut in the half-court on offense. Watch him come to the ball. Watch him cut back door. Watch them set screens. It’s like full blast all the time. And I think Suggs, more than any player on the team, aside from the coaching staff and Mosley, sets that tone of we’re going to do everything hard and with full effort, speed, and it’s gonna hurt. Like, you’re gonna hurt when you play against us. And you’re gonna have to really chase us hard, and eventually, we’re gonna wear your asses down because we’re going to be relentless about it.
That’s one thing. And some of, like, beyond Suggs and Cole Anthony, who we’ve mentioned, Goga Bitadze and Mo Wagner are just absolutely killing it at backup center and now starting center. Goga’s been promoted from third string to starter without Wendell Carter. And like, you’re talking about a guy who, two guys who have been out of NBA rotations for portions of – or in Goga’s case – the majority of his career. Goga comes in the NBA for the Pacers as a stretch five. He’s gonna shoot threes, blah, blah, blah. Orlando has said, how about we go the other way and you just kick everyone’s ass inside, get every offensive rebound, and just be big and tall defensively and active. A+ for Goga .
and Mo Wagner…**First of all, the fact that they play Joe Ingles and Mo Wagner together, and there’s not a fight in every single game, is a minor miracle.** Honestly, great theater. Every free throw rebound when Mo Wagner is in the game. Like some people just sort of, like they don’t go for it, particularly when they’re on the offensive team, so they don’t have inside position. They’re just going back. Mo Wagner is like playing rugby on every single free throw. It’s just, it’s like everyone is in Game Seven of the Finals, and there’s a minute left in the game, yeah, and he’s making shots. He’s had like multiple 20-point games. Those guys, plus Ingles, are the unsung heroes of what’s going on in Orlando. This is going to be a legit good team. They’re going to fade down, I think, a little bit from 12 and five, but they’re not going anywhere, and they’re a blast to watch. Like, they just play so fast and with—it’s been fun.
Um, are you ready for question number two, or do you want to say more?
—
*Burke*: I just say one little follow-up because I think it’s always like an underrated sign of the vibe of the team. You’re just talking about cutting, right? And when a team is willing to cut that hard when they know that the ball is not coming to them, it opens up so much for the people around you. And again, it’s just, to me, it speaks to who they are and how they feel about one another and how hard they’re playing for one another. And to your point about offensive rebound, they’re first in second chance points, and all those little things matter. Um, so yeah, I’m ready for question two.
Lowe: Alright, well, they’re first in shots at the Rim, they’re first in free throw rate, they’re top five in offensive rebounding. They have just embraced this identity of not only playing hard but ‘we’re going to kick your butt at the basket.’ We’re winning the most important real estate in the game on both ends of the floor…
— Grammarlessness to English done by ChatGPT
Great clip, it’s always exciting when the national media shows us a little love and especially exciting when it’s one of a handful that actually understand and discuss the game as opposed to spouting off sensationalist hot takes.
I’ve always like Mose but wasn’t sure if he could graduate from being a player’s coach to a guy who also wasn’t out of his element tactically against some of the better coaches in the league. We have a long way to go, but this year has been promising. His rotations especially have been excellent and he seems to be a lot more active on the sideline this season.
I also loved the little acknowledgement that Orlando has actually shown they could be players in FA when they have a competitive team. It seems to be a common misconception amongst NBA fans, especially on reddit, that players would rather die than come play for Orlando. No, we’ve just sucked for the better part of a decade. Lol