Magic's Late-Season Reliance on Anthony Black is What He Signed Up For

Anthony Black had a front row seat to the Orlando Magic's postseason run last season. This time around, he shoulders plenty of responsibility. Here's why the Magic have full confidence that he's ready for the moment.

Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black (0) shoots against LA Clippers guard Bogdan Bogdanovic (10) during the second quarter at Kia Center. | Mike Watters-Imagn Images

ORLANDO, Fla. – A year ago, Anthony Black was a freshly turned 20-year-old rookie on the outskirts of the Orlando Magic's nightly rotation.

The Magic were battling for playoff seeding, and unless garbage time came, more tenured players were seeing the floor instead of the previous summer's No. 6 draft pick.

A year later, Orlando again finds itself needing to play all 82 to understand its final seed. The Magic know they'll be in the Play-In Tournament, but everything else? That's still to be determined.

This time, though, Black has more than just a front row seat to witness it. Armed with the experience and knowledge gained from his first pro season, the second-year guard has responsibility in this year's postseason push.

"I think that young man knows exactly how to handle situations like this," Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said Monday. "I think (him not playing last season) developed hunger in him to understand what he needs to do when he steps on the floor."

A second-unit mainstay, Orlando first asks the wiry 6-foot-8 guard to be a defensive spark plug at the point of attack. Then, the Magic call for his aggression to parlay into attacking offensively and commanding the floor.

When he does both of those things, it generally translates to results for the Magic. Black averages more points (10.7 vs. 7.8), rebounds (3.3 vs. 2.5), assists (3.3 vs. 2.9) and steals (1.2 vs. 1.0) per game in 36 appeared-in wins versus 38 losses. He also posts significantly better shooting splits in wins (47.8 FG%, 41.1 3PT%) opposed to losses (36.3 FG%, 19.5 3PT%).

The variance in numbers between the two outcomes earmarks the second-year pro as an X-factor. With the fuel from last year onto the fire, Orlando plans to continue leaning on him down the stretch.

That's what Black signed up for.

Head coach Jamahl Mosley of the Orlando Magic and Anthony Black #0 of the Orlando Magic talk during the game against the Denver Nuggets. | Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images

"It's a lot of fun," Black said. "I mean, those are the games we come to play – big games, important games. So it's fun being in the rotation at the end of the year, close to the playoffs."

As important as his play is the trust of Black's teammates for him to be able to handle the setting. April is bringing uncharted territory for everyone – playing postseason basketball but not guaranteed a playoff series – but Black is set to get his first true taste of NBA ball on a bigger stage.

But his preparation behind the scenes has caught the attention of those around the facility and inspired them with the same confidence the up-and-coming guard is showing more often.

"I'm really impressed with AB, especially the last couple of weeks," Franz Wagner said at Tuesday morning's shootaround before the evening's monumental clash with the Hawks. "I thought he's played extremely well. Not just giving us energy and a lot of confidence off the bench, but for his age, being pretty poised and organizing us as a group. I think he's taken a lot of really good steps this year, and the sky's the limit for him."

"(Black is) just staying the course," veteran guard Gary Harris said. "AB's young, so he's figuring out real-time a lot of stuff. He's been able to play and get some valuable experience, learning by watching last year and then being able to apply it this year. He's been great for us, and it's fun to see him grow and see his confidence continue to grow. He's a great, unique player in this league."

Black plays with a certain charm and joy in his game that reflects his youthful spirit. Although his game is expanding further with more time and opportunities to play, his eagerness to be on the floor shines bright when he's at his best.

He's at his best when he's himself. With a short sprint to his first true postseason directly ahead, there's no time to be anyone else.

"I think he's just getting started," Wagner said. "I'm sure he's feeling that too, that with more rhythm, you figure some stuff out, and I think that's when the confidence and the belief in yourself really picks up."

Added Black: "Super excited for these next four (games), and then after that, super excited to see where we end up and what we do."

Whatever happens, he's sure to be a big reason as to why.

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