By John DentonNov. 1, 2015
CHICAGO – The schedule-makers did the Orlando Magic no favors at the beginning of this season what with them having to face five teams that made the playoffs last season and a sixth – the Oklahoma City Thunder – that would have been there if not for widespread injuries.
A big reason why those teams are so dominant? Because they are all led by superstar point guards.
That’s led to Magic second-year standout Elfrid Payton having his hands full every night on the defensive end. Payton, who missed the final two weeks of the preseason with a hamstring strain before returning for the season-opener, had the unenviable task of facing Washington’s John Wall and Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook in the first two games and former MVP Derrick Rose was across from him on Sunday night in Chicago.
Still to come for Payton: Former all-star point guards Jrue Holiday (New Orleans), Ty Lawson (Houston) and Kyle Lowry (Toronto). Payton got a taste of the nightly challenge at point guard last season when he finished fourth in the NBA’s Rookie of the Year voting, but that doesn’t mean he is at an advantage now when facing a star player basically every night at the NBA’s deepest and most talented position.
“I feel like I know what to expect now better than last season but each year presents a new challenge because these guys work on their games over the summer,” said Payton, who averaged 12.5 points, 6.5 assists, 6.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals in the first two games. “I just look forward to playing against them all.”
Wall scored 23 points in the opener against Payton, but the point guard turned the ball over six times before shaking free for the game-winning points in the final seconds. Payton didn’t fare so well against Westbrook on Friday night. The Magic’s cat-quick, long-armed point guard frustrated Westbrook early in the game and OKC’s superstar missed nine of his first 11 shots. However, Westbrook caught fire late in the game, scoring 27 of his 48 points in the fourth quarter and two overtime periods.
Fans and media members like to play up the head-to-head battles between NBA players at particular positions, but the reality is that point guards such as Payton are usually getting picked off by screens and those one-on-one battles fizzle late in games.
Both Wall and Westbrook repeatedly ran sets that involved high pick-and-roll plays that would allow them to shake free from Payton’s defense and attack Magic big man Nikola Vucevic with a running start.
Payton admitted when trying to face some of the game’s fastest and most athletic players all he can try and do is make life difficult for them.
“If I can hold them under their average and make them take a lot of shots, I see that as a victory for our team,” he said.
CLOSE TO HOME: Magic coach Scott Skiles preaches to his players to treat each game the same, so he said he would hold himself to the same standard on Sunday even though he grew up 75 miles from Chicago and coached the Bulls from 2003-07. And Skiles added that if he got emotional every time that he faced one of the teams that he either played for or coached he would have to keep a big supply of tissues around most of the season.
“It’s another game. I played for five teams and coached four, so I’m working on about a third of the league. So at some point it’s just another game,” said Skiles, who played for Milwaukee, Indiana, Orlando, Washington and Philadelphia and has coached Phoenix, Chicago, Milwaukee and Orlando. “I grew up 75 miles or so from here, so this is kind of a home area. My son lives here now and Chicago is a great sports city. We had a good run here for a few years, but we couldn’t quite get over the hump in the playoffs. But it was fun and I enjoyed coaching here.”
SKILES AND SCORING: Skiles’ legacy with the Magic has long been secure what with him still being a fan favorite from his four seasons in Orlando as a gritty, gutty point guard.
But Skiles has added another interesting facet to his Magic resume.
Skiles, 51, has now been involved in the two highest-scoring games in the 27-year history of the Magic.
Skiles not only played in Orlando’s 155-116 defeat of Denver on Dec. 30, 1990, but he set some NBA history that still stands today with 30 assists.
On Friday, with Skiles as coach, Oklahoma City broke the Magic’s hearts with a 139-136 double-overtime victory. The 275 combined points by the Magic and Thunder barely eclipsed the 271 points in Skiles’ 30-assist game 25 years ago.
CHUCKLING, NOT CHOKING, AT THE LINE: When Orlando forward Aaron Gordon was intentionally fouled with 16 seconds remaining and the Magic up just one on Friday night, a nervous hush fell over the Amway Center crowd.
Fans were worried because of the kind of free throw shooter Gordon is. However, it was Gordon who got the last laugh because he’s put in so much work to become a better shooter from the free throw line and the 3-point arc.
Gordon stepped to the line and confidently stroked two free throws that were so true neither either touched the rim. It was a good thing that he made both tries considering that Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant drilled a 26-foot 3-pointer seconds later to tie the game up.
“It was awesome, physically and mentally. It shows a lot of the work that I’ve put in,” said Gordon, who made 10 of 14 free throws in Orlando’s first two games. “I plan on making many more (clutch free throws).”
Gordon said he welcomed teams intentionally fouling him because he’s confident he can knock down those tries from the line now.
“I chuckled after I made the free throws because I was barely hitting the backboard at (University of) Arizona,” said Gordon, who shot 42 percent from the free throw line as a freshman and 48 percent last season as a rookie with the Magic. “It’s cool that I can step up in a big game like that and make them. I thought that I iced the game (on Friday).”
