Orlando Magic: 3 goals for upcoming trip to Mexico

3. Go to their bench more

Although it may not look it on the surface, the Magic have a bit of depth to their bench this season. While it is easy for coach Clifford to ride his starters for as long as he can, and with players like Vucevic having the best year of his career it is easy to understand why, there are capable options elsewhere on the roster.

Jerian Grant has hardly been a revelation since joining during the offseason, but the 35.1 percent he is shooting from deep is up considerably from his career average of 31.8 percent. If you look back over the last few games as well, opponents are giving Grant that shot.

Rookie Mohamed Bamba is another player who could see his role expand down in Mexico. He may not have played against the Dallas Mavericks for violating team rules, and it’s true that he’s playing exactly like you would expect a first-year player to play.

However, with Vucevic in danger of burning himself out if he continues to carry the team the way he has, the opportunity will be there for Bamba to play more than the 17 minutes per game he has averaged so far this season.

Another reason to do this is because of who the Magic will be playing. The Bulls are a mess right now, and this matchup could be a good opportunity to turn to their bench. Khem Birch at least looked committed against the Dallas Mavericks in Bamba’s absence.

Jarell Martin and Wesley Iwundu are another two players who have had their moments in the rotation so far this season, but who have recently fallen out of Clifford’s favor. For Iwundu in particular, these two games represent a great chance to force his way back into Clifford’s plans.

The second game against the Jazz will be tougher, but they are languishing near the bottom of an extremely cramped Western Conference and have already made changes in the form of trading for Kyle Korver. There’s plenty of reason to turn to the reserves in Mexico.