Orlando Magic: 3 takeaways from Game 3 loss vs. Raptors

2. Magic need to find their 3-point stroke

Speaking of finding their groove, as the Magic have grown more and more reliant on the 3-ball in this series, they’ve gotten further and further away from who they are as a team. Orlando’s identity is obviously on the defensive side of the ball, but volume 3-point shooting has never been part of their DNA.

During the regular season, the Magic took attempted 31.2 3s per game (15th in the league) and made 35.6 percent of them (11th). In the Game 1 win, they took 29 3s and made 14 of them (48.3 percent). In Game 2, they put up 34 triples, but only made nine (26.5 percent). In Game 3, they jacked up 44 long range bombs, making 13 (29.5 percent). It’s pretty easy to see the trend.

During that critical 16-0 Toronto run in the third quarter, Orlando missed 10 consecutive shots from the field. Five of them were contested 3s. In fact, the Magic shot 2-for-10 from deep in the period that ultimately decided Game 3.

They’re not going to shoot near 50 percent from 3 every night like they did in Game 1, but they’ve got to get closer to league-average on this front and stop forcing so many contested 3-pointers if they want to rummage up enough offense to tie the series.