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By John Denton
Dec. 16, 2015
ORLANDO – When he made the daring decision to change the Orlando Magic’s lineups on Nov. 24 – a move that sparked a five-game winning streak – head coach Scott Skiles was quick to credit Victor Oladipo’s willingness to play from a reserve role for the good of the team.
Now that Skiles has made another adjustment to the rotation, inserting rookie Mario Hezonja at point guard, the head coach is once again saying that it’s all possible because of Oladipo’s flexibility and desire to help the team.
Looking for ways to get more 3-point shooting on the floor and willing to be creative, Skiles moved Hezonja from his natural position of shooting guard to point guard. Hezonja has held his own at point guard – he had eight points, three rebounds, one assist and two turnovers in 18 minutes on Monday – largely because of a big assist from Oladipo, Skiles said.
“The only way we can do it, though, is because Victor is such a good defender and Victor can guard the other team’s point guard,” Skiles said. “When we bring Mario in he doesn’t have to guard (Charlotte point guard) Kemba (Walker) or somebody like that and that takes some of the pressure off him on the defensive end. That’s the only way that we can pull it off.”
Since moving into a reserve role 10 games ago, Oladipo has been at his do-everything best, averaging 15 points, 4.9 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 1.1 steals.
“At the end of the day, we all just go out there and play as hard as we can,” Oladipo said. “Mario is blessed and fortunate enough to (be able to) play multiple positions and I can do the same. I just go out there and try to be effective.”
ELFRID EFFECT: When Magic point guard Elfrid Payton is playing like he did in Monday’s win in Brooklyn – 17 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals – it gets noticed by everyone, especially opposing head coaches. That certainly was the case with Charlotte head coach Steve Clifford as he scouted Monday’s game in preparation for the Bobcats being in Orlando.
“He has a penetration game, it starts in the open court where he has a chance to use his speed and his size,” Clifford raved. “And then with his pick-and-roll game, he’s got that burst of speed, he’s long and he takes (long) steps. And to get ready to play against him, it’s his ball pressure and his defense. That’s where he has the chance to be a really good player.”
Payton injured his hamstring in early October and missed the final five games of the preseason. That likely had a lot to do with his slow start to the season as he averaged just 9.9 points and shot only 34.2 percent in the first 14 games. However, Payton has turned it around of late, averaging 14.5 points, 6.7 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 1.7 steals while shooting 48.1 percent over the past 10 games.
“He plays harder more consistently now,” Skiles said of his point guard. “He stays into the possession more than he was. He appears to (embracing) the possession because he’s playing at a higher level.”
What Skiles likes most is that Payton is playing with much more assertiveness now and he’s keeping pressure on foes by continuing to probe the defense with hard drives to the rim.
“Really, he has to (attack) in order to be effective,” Skiles added. “Even though his shot is going in more and we believe long-term it’s going to go in more, people still play off of him quite a bit. If he’s not in attack mode, then our spacing is really questionable out there.”
ACTIVE BUT OUT: Charlotte center Al Jefferson was put back on the active roster for Wednesday’s game, but he was still out because of the start of a NBA-imposed five-game suspension for violating the league’s banned substances policy.
Jefferson strained his left calf muscle early in a game on Nov. 29 and missed the next 6 1/2 games – five of them wins for the Hornets. Jefferson’s ban from the NBA came down on Dec. 9, but the five-game suspension couldn’t begin until he was medically cleared to play. Wednesday’s game against the Magic was the first of the five games that Jefferson must sit out of because of the suspension.
Jefferson was with the Hornets for Wednesday morning’s shoot-around practice, but he was not allowed in the arena for the game. Clifford is hopeful that Jefferson – who is averaging 13.7 points and 6.4 rebounds a game – can find ways to keep himself in shape during his suspension.
“Unfortunately with the nature of his (calf) injury … he was in the pool, but at the beginning of (being injured) but he couldn’t do anything,” Clifford said. “He’s got 10 days (before playing again) and he’s going to have to do a lot of conditioning. He did shootaround (on Wednesday) and he can do some of those things. But with our schedule we won’t be doing a lot of practicing, so he’s going to have to do a lot of it with the assistants and the strength coaches.”
COLLEGE CONNECTION: With Charlotte in Orlando on Tuesday night to prepare for Wednesday’s game it gave Oladipo and former Indiana University teammate Cody Zeller a chance to catch up. Oladipo said he took the 7-foot, 240-pound Zeller out for dinner – he pays in Orlando, while Zeller picks up the bill in Charlotte – and later the two of them hung out at his place and watched the Republican debates.
Oladipo said his connection to Zeller delves much deeper than simply being former teammates. Oladipo said he will always be close to Zeller because the two worked so closely to build up Indiana’s program six years ago. When Oladipo was a freshman and Zeller was a sophomore in 2010-11, Indiana won just 12 games and went 3-15 in the Big 10. By the time the two of them left Indiana as first-round NBA draft choices, the Hoosiers won 29 games and went 14-4 in the Big 10.
“I think the biggest thing (in their friendship) is opposites attract. Me and Cody act completely and totally in different ways – Cody is quiet and laid back and I’m kind of outgoing a little bit,” Oladipo said. “But with me and Cody, when you go through a struggle like we did while trying to bring a program back like Indiana, going through all of those ups and downs, hardships and endless workouts, it brings you closer together. I think that’s why we’re so close.”
