Magic Must Take Harsh Lessons in Stride During Grace Period

As they enter a phase similar to a second training camp, the Orlando Magic must balance being their most realistic critics and apologists while they find their feel again.

Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner (22) drives to the basket against Miami Heat guard Pelle Larsson (9) during the third quarter at Kaseya Center. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

MIAMI — If it's possible to recreate training camp in the middle of an NBA season, the Orlando Magic are doing it now.

"It's the timing that we have to have together," Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said Monday morning after his team's shootaround. "With guys coming back into the fold ... we've got to be able to hit the court. We're treating it as such."

From Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner's torn obliques to Jalen Suggs' lower back strain and left quad contusions and Goga Bitadze's stint in concussion protocol, the Magic are gradually reassembling to full strength piece by piece. They're not there yet, but they're much closer than they were a couple weeks ago.

In hopes of speeding up that reintegration, the Magic have taken advantage of every chance they can outside of game situations to touch the court together. It's a necessity after spending so much of this season without those top contributors available.

No team is a finished product at the season's midpoint, and certainly none that have been half-healthy for most of the year. It shouldn't then come as a surprise that the Magic are hitting bumps in the road while trying to find their rhythm on the fly.

"The reality of things [is] you're not gonna jump right back into where you left off," Mosley said pregame on Monday. "You want to win every game, but also understanding the process in doing that. If you've only played six games together, you're not going to be like teams that have played 46 games together."

Take Monday night in Miami. The Magic had the Heat beaten with half a quarter to play before letting the lead slip and the game enter overtime. Then, the same thing happened in the first five-minute overtime period. Ultimately, an out-of-gas Magic team fell 125-119 in double overtime.

Yet, had the Magic taken better care of the ball and converted more free throws, they likely wouldn't have had to describe this latest lesson in the context of a loss.

"This is one of those bumps that you talk about hitting," Mosley said postgame. "You wish it didn't hit this way in a loss, but our ability to bounce back, watch it, and understand exactly where we can improve in these moments.

"We've got to be better in these moments, and we will moving forward."

MORE: Magic squander late leads, lose in double overtime to Heat

Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (5) celebrates after scoring against the Orlando Magic during the fourth quarter at Kaseya Center. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Contrast Monday's finish with Saturday's win over the Pistons. The Magic's reunited stars, playing together for the first since Oct. 30, led a 20-4 fourth-quarter run that gave a glimpse of exactly what they're capable of. Suggs was missing Monday, but there were more flashes in South Beach of the Magic's operating potential.

"It's a good experience, still," Goga Bitadze said. "We're going to have these types of games, close games. We're going to learn from this and we've just got to stay connected — and we will. It's going to happen.

"We are able to do this. We've shown that we can do it, but we're not robots. It's gonna sting, but we're going to come back and win the next one."

The Magic are trying their best to hit the ground running again in a league unwilling to wait up for them. Grace is necessary to move forward after inconsistent results.

In Wagner's third game back from injury, he played 40 minutes. Paolo Banchero played 44. They combined to shoot 4-of-18 from three and 17-of-46 overall and committed eight of Orlando's 15 turnovers — seven in the final quarter and two overtimes.

They're back at the top of every opponent's scouting report. Knowing that up-and-down performances could follow their returns, their struggles have been met with the same patience as the team's overall outlook.

Assessing his play since his return two-plus weeks ago, Paolo Banchero told locker room reporters he's still learning from each game and looking for ways to improve.

He then ranked getting the feel back — for both himself and his teammates — as the biggest challenge facing them. When they do that, the Magic are confident the results will come.

For now, the Magic have to be their most realistic critics and apologists.

"I thought we had great stretches in the game," Wagner said. "But nuances [and] details decide close games against good teams.

"We've just got to improve there, get better at it and work at it, and we'll be just fine."

Related Stories on the Orlando Magic

• FAMILIARITY BRINGS RESULTS FOR MAGIC'S CORE TRIO: Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero took the floor together for the first time since Oct. 30 on Saturday night. The results showed them what they're capable of. CLICK HERE
• MAGIC'S FOCUS TURNS INWARD AS HEALTH RETURNS: The Magic know they have to play better, but "we're at a point of the season now that it's time to kind of step it up and do that," Cory Joseph said. CLICK HERE
• FRANZ IS BACK: "It was a long process and I'm not the most patient person, so [it was] not that easy for me, but it feels good to be done with it," Franz Wagner said Thursday. CLICK HERE
• HAVE MAGIC'S INJURIES CAUGHT UP TO THEM?: With several contributors missing time, the Magic have skidded as of late. But their mounting casualties are no excuse, they say. CLICK HERE
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