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Are The Orlando Magic Turning A Corner In 2015-16?

By Gerald Bourguet

Oct 30, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Scott Skiles talks with guard Victor Oladipo (5) as the game goes onto overtime against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Amway Center. Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic 139-136 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 30, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Scott Skiles talks with guard Victor Oladipo (5) as the game goes onto overtime against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Amway Center. Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic 139-136 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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In their first season under head coach Scott Skiles, are the Orlando Magic starting to turn a corner in 2015-16?

Orlando Magic
Oct 30, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Scott Skiles talks with guard Victor Oladipo (5) as the game goes onto overtime against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Amway Center. Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic 139-136 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

For the past couple of years, the Orlando Magic have been “a year away.” In the post-Dwight Howard era, they did well to accrue young talent, nabbing sneaky good players like Nikola Vucevic, Tobias Harris and Evan Fournier by trade and drafting gifted youngsters like Victor Oladipo, Elfrid Payton and Aaron Gordon.

Under Jacque Vaughn, however, the Magic mostly underwhelmed, even by the standards of a young team that was still a few years away. They were never expected to reach the heights of their title contender days of not so long ago, but there were too few signs of progress for the front office’s liking, leading to Vaughn’s termination and the eventual hiring of head coach Scott Skiles.

So far this season, the Magic are 12-10. They’ve won six of their last eight games and sit at ninth in the vastly improved Eastern Conference. They may be a playoff team, they may still be a year away.

But with Orlando sporting the league’s sixth ranked defense and six of their 10 losses coming by five points or less, this time it feels like the Magic are actually only one year away, rather than being “one year away.”

Here’s a look at how the Magic have changed under Skiles’ tutelage and what expectations should be for the 2015-16 NBA season.

Next: Setting Realistic Expectations

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