Orlando Magic: 3 unexpected stats from promising start
By Luke Duffy
1. They’re passing the ball
One of the main reasons the Magic are seeing a surge in their offensive efforts is because of how well they have been moving the ball lately. Each game now seeming to produce two or three moments or plays where their unselfishness is clear for all to see.
They are making the extra pass or giving the ball up for a teammate to get a better look. So much so that right now Orlando ranks a hugely impressive sixth in assists per game with 25.5.
Halftime! Orlando Magic lead 65-40 over the New York Knicks.
— Orlando Pinstriped Post (@OPPMagicBlog) November 12, 2018
Vucevic is leading the way with 15 on 7-10. Orlando's passing has been on point, leading to 17 assists on their 25 makes.
New York woke up a little toward the end of the half, but still shot just 31%.
This is like the best case scenario for an organization without a clearly established All-Star level player. The ball doesn’t stick to anybody, and moves about the court to the open man.
Ross should get a good deal of credit for this, his movement off the ball and knowing when to pass and shoot huge for the team right now.
While Vucevic is their best player, and Aaron Gordon may one day be an All-Star, this balance is really working for coach Clifford offensively right now. Even Fournier, who can sometimes do too much in his efforts to get the Magic going offensively, has been much better at this lately.
Some questionable shots against the 76ers withstanding, Fournier has been as willing to move the ball as anybody else. His usage rate of 26.2 percent a career high, but so too are the 4.1 assists he is averaging.
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Seeing the Magic rank so highly in this category has been one of the nicest surprises of their season so far, and the nice brand of basketball they are playing offensively, as well as winning some of these games, illustrates great and in some ways unexpected progress.