Orlando Magic: Giving their rotation players a chance

The Orlando Magic have endured a tough stretch recently, but giving their rotation players more game time could be the key to getting some wins.

January has been a rough month for the Orlando Magic so far, with a recent six-game road trip across all four continental time zones in the U.S. They went 1-5, really putting a dent in their playoff ambitions.

Saturday night saw a return to winning ways though, as they edged out the surging Boston Celtics, 105-103. It was a game that saw the Magic come from behind to win, as opposed to the morale-sapping losses on the road that have seen them throw away big double-digit leads on the way to a loss.

While the likes of Terrence Ross and Aaron Gordon were important in that win, a new theme has emerged for the Magic in the last couple of games: the need to trust their rotation players more, who have given them a big lift off the bench when entrusted to.

This is most true for center Khem Birch, a mini-revelation for the Magic last season with his ability to protect the paint and run the floor diligently. He appeared in 42 games, and by season’s end had established himself as an ideal backup to Nikola Vucevic. He also came at a fraction of the price of former Magic center Bismack Biyombo.

This season has been a different story though, with rookie Mohamed Bamba backing up Vucevic. Bamba is their future and Vucevic could be a first time All-Star, so Birch’s role with the team was always going to be a small one.

He has appeared in 18 games off the bench, averaging 8.3 minutes a night. Crucially for the Magic though, Birch’s mentality has never changed, and when he is on the court he only tries to help his teammates and have a positive attitude around the locker room. Birch had this to say after the win over the Celtics, via NBA.com:

"“I told [Clifford] that I understand reality. Mo’s going to play and Vooch is going to play and those guys are so talented. I feel like in life, you’ve got to understand the reality of the situation. I’m always going to stay ready.”"

Having a player who has an attitude like that is invaluable to an organization that is chasing the playoffs. Birch is no star, he’s not even a household name, but any player has the potential to bring a locker room down. Birch won’t be that guy and is ideal to have off the bench because of his defensive ability. So it may be time for him to have a bigger role again.

Birch’s 18 games are a small sample size, but when he is on the court the Magic go from having a defensive rating of 108.3 (12th in the NBA) to 101.6. That number would lead the entire league if it were applied to the Magic as a whole.

Clearly then, Birch is doing some good for the team, and he may be about to make head coach Steve Clifford’s job more difficult by giving him a selection headache. Bamba will be out of action for a little while longer with a sore foot, which thankfully has shown no structural damage.

This is Birch’s chance to establish himself once more as Vucevic’s backup, and he’s got the defensive chops and attitude to make that a reality. The Magic need to win games now to get back into the playoff race, and Bamba’s rawness was not helping them achieve that goal on most nights.

Birch isn’t the only rotation player who should see his role increase, although they may not have as clear a path to more minutes as Birch will have while Bamba is out injured. Point guard Isaiah Briscoe has averaged 8.8 minutes per game in 20 games, all off the bench.

Until recently, he was a player who received spot minutes, usually in garbage time when games were already lost. Like Birch, however, he was impressive in that win over the Celtics, finishing with a +20 for his performance. In his last three games, he is averaging 18.6 minutes a night.

While injuries to other players aren’t going to open up a spot for Briscoe, his improved play combined with the Magic’s backcourt situation should see him continue to get chances to impress over the next couple of games. This is great for the team’s depth.

Jerian Grant, the backup point guard to start the season, as received DNPs in his last two games. He is slipping out of the rotation altogether, with Jonathon Simmons instilled as the backup to D.J. Augustin for a number of games now.

While this creates different and unique lineups for the Magic to use against opponents, it is clear Simmons is better off the bench as an energy guy with the likes of Ross. With a backup needed going forward, Briscoe has stepped up and tried to make that role his own.

It is unclear how long he can keep this up for, and the Magic look like an ideal candidate to make a trade before the deadline to improve their point guard situation. Briscoe has also shot 40 percent from 3-point range (on an admittedly tiny sample size of 10 shots from deep), showing an outside shooting touch that is needed for a below average outfit in this category (34.8 percent).

Both players need only look at Wesley Iwundu as proof that they could work their way into a bigger role, as this season he has done everything from start 12 of the 32 games he’s played, been out of the rotation himself and everything in between. Iwundu continues to work and play hard, and is a part of coach Clifford’s plans for the team.

Having gone beyond the halfway point in the season, the Orlando Magic need to find help and wins from more unlikely sources throughout their roster to have a chance at making the postseason. In Khem Birch and Isaiah Briscoe, they have two players who need to see their roles increase for the good of the team.