Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors.
By John Denton
Jan. 9, 2016
ORLANDO – Of course, they have to fly eight hours to get it, but the Orlando Magic are hoping to use their upcoming trip to London as a means of getting some much-needed rest.
Because of the travel from Florida to England and the five-hour time difference, the Magic and their opponent, the Toronto Raptors, will be given some time off on each side of Thursday’s game at O2 Arena in London.
The Magic will play just one game in the next eight days, giving the team somewhat of a chance to catch its breath from a daunting start to the season. Also, the Magic will need to bank as much energy as possible for an extremely difficult closing kick that will see them play 11 road games in March and 14 of the final 24 will be away from the Amway Center.
“I think the rest is good for us, but at the same time our sleep will be a key factor,” Magic forward Tobias Harris said. “For us, we don’t want to buy into all of (the excuses of travel). We’re going to play a game. And I think it’s a great experience for everybody, so we’ve got to take it in and enjoy it. I think it could be helpful in terms of building more chemistry.
“But it can be looked at both ways – if we come back and drop a couple of games, some will say, `Ahhh, the trip messed us up.’ But if we win a couple of games after, they’ll say, `The trip was great for the chemistry,” Harris continued. “But as a team we’ve got to enjoy it, which we will because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime trip.”
Friday’s victory in Brooklyn was Orlando’s 18th road game of the season. To put that into perspective, Southeast Division rival Miami played their 14 road game of the season on Saturday night. Also, Saturday’s game was Orlando’s seventh back-to-back set of games so far.
Magic head coach Scott Skiles is somewhat worried about what the time off and the trip to London will do to his team’s rhythm. Rust is more of a concern to Skiles than rest.
“I’m a little bit more concerned about the players settling into the rhythm of a season and then all of a sudden there’s an all-star break with one game. That’s, in effect, what it is,” Skiles said. “Then, we come home and go right back out on the road. It’s there and it’s a really good team that we’re going to play. Hopefully we can enjoy some of the trip as well and try to win a game.”
PAYTON’S RETURN: Elfrid Payton was the only Magic player to appear in all 82 games last season and he played in the first 34 games of this season. However, Payton was held out of Monday’s game in Detroit because of a bone bruise in his left ankle and missed his fourth straight game on Saturday night.
“A little bit of progress, but I’m just waiting for the chance to test it,” Payton said Saturday night. “It’s a bone bruise and it’s totally different (than an ankle sprain). It’s kind of hard to explode off it. It’s just a tough one.”
The hope now is that Payton can use the off days ahead and be ready to return to action by Thursday’s game in London. Payton has done some non-weight-bearing work so far, but Saturday was some of his first on-court work since suffering the injury last Saturday in Cleveland. “It was all right, but I’m just trying to get that explosion back,” he said.
“We’re hoping that he can play in London,” Skiles said. “We feel good about that, but we’ll see.”
Compounding the issue of Payton’s absence has been C.J. Watson’s extended period on the inactive list. Watson, who was signed as a free agent in the offseason to provide depth and veteran savvy to the point guard position, missed his 30th straight game on Saturday night.
Victor Oladipo has filled in nicely for Payton as the starting point guard. He made a career-best six 3-pointers on Friday in Brooklyn and scored 20 points. He also had 20 points on Wednesday against Indiana and 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists in Monday’s loss in Detroit.
FEWER FREEBIES: The Magic have made tremendous strides in several areas this season and as a result they have been much more successful on the court. However, one particular point of interest – getting to the free throw line – has seen a troubling regression for the Magic.
Orlando is getting to the free throw line just 17.97 times a game – the fewest in the NBA. By comparison, Orlando’s opponents are shooting 24 free throws a game – six more than the Magic.
To put that in comparison, Orlando got to the free throw line 19.1 times a game last year. In the 2012-13 season, Orlando set the all-time NBA record for fewest free throws in a season with 1,358 (16.6 free throw attempts a game).
Friday’s victory in Brooklyn was a microcosm of how Orlando has been able to find success despite getting regularly outscored from the free throw line. Orlando took just six free throws against the Nets – four by Harris and two from center Nikola Vucevic – and still won 83-77.
“It’s got to be frustrating for the guys, just getting six free throws in a game,” Skiles said.
As has been often the case this season, Brooklyn made more free throws (12) than the Magic attempted (six) on Friday. Orlando went into Saturday having shot more or the same free throws than its opponent eight times and they are 6-2 in those games. In games where they shoot fewer free throws, they are a respectable 14-15.
