Orlando Magic: Nikola Vucevic having insanely underrated playoff run

Orlando Magic big man Nikola Vucevic is playing fantastic basketball in their NBA playoffs series against the Milwaukee Bucks, flying under the radar.

Out of all the Eastern Conference first-round matchups in the NBA playoffs, the only one that has not ended in a clean sweep is the Orlando Magic vs. the Milwaukee Bucks. While the Magic currently find themselves in a 3-1 hole, the biggest takeaway from the series thus far has undoubtedly been the play of former All-Star center Nikola Vucevic.

In four games, the 29-year-old big man has been masterful, putting the Milwaukee Bucks’ league-best defense on notice.

• Game One- 35 points, 14 rebounds, four assists
• Game Two- 32 points, 10 rebounds, two assists
• Game Three- 20 points, five rebounds, two assists
• Game Four- 31 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists

According to Basketball Reference, with three 30-point, 10-rebound games, Vucevic now matches current Detroit Pistons forward and six-time All-Star Blake Griffin with three for their playoff careers. The shocking revelation, however, is that while Griffin has played in 53 playoff games over his career, Vucevic has played in just 10, a testament to how good he has been, considering they all came in this first-round series.

Making his mark in NBA playoffs history

Averaging 29.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game, Vucevic has upped his production significantly, specifically in the scoring department. The big man averaged 19.6 points per game on 47.7 percent field goal shooting and 33.9 percent 3-point shooting during the regular season. Four games into this series, he is averaging 29.5 points per game on much more efficient shooting averages, coming in at 54.0 percent field goal shooting, and a much improved 43.1 percent from behind the arc. With these numbers, he is currently averaging the seventh-most points per game in the 2020 NBA Playoffs.

All of this from the one-time All-Star, currently playing the best basketball of his career, and it has flown under the radar almost entirely. There are several attributing factors to this, whether it be the fact that all but one of the Orlando-Milwaukee games have tipped off during the lunch hour, possibly that the Bucks dismantled them in three out of four games, or because they are the 8-seeded Magic, after all.

So far, the biggest headline to come out of this series was a scuffle between Marvin Williams and James Ennis III that resulted in two ejections. While Vucevic might not be getting the acknowledgment from the rest of the league or the mainstream media, his teammate D.J. Augustin and head coach Steve Clifford have praised the big man’s recent play. Via Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel:

"“He’s been inside and outside. He’s done it all. He creates so much offense for our team and he puts so much pressure on the defense because of the nature of how he plays,” Magic coach Steve Clifford said.“The thing that I love about Vooch the most is how unselfish he is,” Augustin said. “He can score and be a top guy in this league with the best of them, but he’s so unselfish and he doesn’t care about scoring and all the accolades that come with it. He’s more about the team and getting everybody involved and just making the right play.”"

Whatever the case might be, Nikola Vucevic deserves some proper recognition for this incredible run he is putting together. A defeat on Wednesday would seal the Orlando Magic’s fate and send them packing after the opening round if it comes to that. Regardless of what happens, there is no doubt that Vucevic has been fantastic in this series.