Orlando Magic: 3 takeaways from the 2018 offseason

3. Wingspan is everything

Good luck scoring in the paint against the Magic this season. With the drafting of Bamba, the development of Jonathan Isaac and the crazy length that the Magic already have, this team resembles MJ’s final dunk against the Monstars in Space Jam.

We got a tiny glimpse into this defensive potential with Bamba and Isaac on the floor together in NBA Summer League. They both averaged over two blocks a game and absolutely shut down the lane.

In this year’s draft, the Magic also drafted Melvin Frazier out of Tulane and Justin Jackson out of Maryland. Both players are under 6’6”, but both have wingspans well beyond 7’0″. General manager John Hammond and his staff had a clear motive here. I believe that if Trae Young was there instead of Bamba, they would have gone a different route, but instead they opted for massive amounts of wingspan.

According to Reddit R/NBA, the Magic currently have nine players with wingspans over 7’0”. In today’s NBA, where speed and shooting are priorities, the Magic have opted to try to defend with length. It was a little aggravating as a Magic fan to see them not try to improve on their 25th-ranked offense last season with the draft or any of their trades, but I guess more defense doesn’t hurt, right?

At the end of the day, the name of the game is not letting teams score on you. The Magic improved this offseason extensively on the defensive end and it’s going to be exciting to see Bamba and Isaac swat some shots this year.

I have talked ad-nauseum about the length strategy that Hammond and Steve Clifford have put forth this offseason. Will it work? I think it will on the defensive end. However, on offense, this strategy could backfire with the glut of bigs the Magic currently have.