Photo by Brock Williams-Smith/NBAE via Getty Images

BOX SCORE

For the Orlando Magic, Saturday night was a prime example of what is good, what can go wrong, and how to preserve the latter when faced with adversity.

Early on, the offense was clicking, the ball was moving, and life was sublime. This included your usual suspects such as Jameer Nelson breaking the Bobcat defense off the dribble, Nikola Vucevic setting up shop in the post and finding open cutters, and just general good effort from J.J. Redick.

That being said, there really was a team-wide commitment to finding the open man. It got Baby (20 points, 7-for-11 shooting) and Afflalo (20 as well, 8-for-14) good looks off the move, it got Redick countless open threes (though he only went 3-for-9), and it got Vuce and Nicholson wide open under the basket.

Perhaps the best part, though, was that we finally caught a glimpse of New Orleans Gustavo Ayon. Ayon is clearly a player who thrives when the ball is crisply going from man to man — he’s an excellent passer from the high post and is at his best as a scorer when he gets the ball moving towards the basket. All of these were on display late in the first and early in the second, when Ayon found Redick off a gorgeous backdoor cut, Nicholson down low with a touch pass, and got a nice layup in semi-transition off a good look from E’Twaun Moore.

All in all, the offense was a joy to watch. The Magic scored 119 points in 90 possessions and that figure could have easily been higher if the Magic shot a bit better from three. Orlando went 5-for-17 on the night, including missing 7 straight at one point — a lot of which were good looks for Redick.

And yet, the Magic almost gave this game away because they couldn’t contain dribble penetration. Give or take a few post-ups for Byron Mullens and Bismack Biyombo, most of which went badly, Charlotte’s entire offense was based on the ability of guys like Kemba Walker, Ramon Sessions, and Gerald Henderson to get to the rim. The Bobcats constantly did so, both in transition, where they scored 23 points off 14 Orlando turnovers, and in the half-court. Walker was the main catalyst here, torching both Nelson and Moore en route to a career-high 32 points. The Bobcats also used this to get to the line 29 times, even getting Nelson into a rare bout of foul trouble that forced Orlando to go to Moore as their only ball handler early in the fourth quarter.

Eventually, though, the Magic persevered.

Charlotte, now losers of 11 straight, isn’t a very talented team, but every win counts both in the standings and for the psyche of a young team such as Orlando. Games such as these, where everybody contributed to a good team effort (even Harkless, who was mostly non-existent on offense, pulled his weight defensively, including an insane block of a mid-air Michael Kidd-Gilchrist jumper), are important going forward.

MVP (Most Valuable Player)

Walker was scorching from inside, outside, and all around. He got his teammates involved early, with 7 assists through the first three quarters, and went to work on his own when it was needed, scoring 12 in the fourth. All in all, 32 and 7 for the second-year guard.

Defining Moment

After five quick points by Walker put the Bobcats up 93-92 with 4:07 left, the Magic didn’t allow another point until Biyombo’s dunk with 1:15 remaining in the game. In those three minutes, the Magic scored eight points of their own to seal the deal.

That Was … Scary

As he was defending a Gerald Henderson drive, Arron Afflalo fell to the floor and didn’t get up for a few minutes. The replays looked horrible but after what looked like a serious injury, Arron eventually got up, walked back to the bench on his own, and eventually re-entered the game.

Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images

BOX SCORE

One of the main reasons why the Orlando Magic have overachieved up to this point in the season is because their youth have been able to contribute. Guys like Nikola Vucevic, E’Twaun Moore, Maurice Harkless, and Andrew Nicholson have each played a role in the Magic’s surprising success.

The Magic’s 99-85 win over the Golden State Warriors on Friday was the latest example of youth being served for Orlando.

The Warriors, who had been perfect in their East Coast road trip and riding a five-game road winning streak (which included an impressive 97-95 win against the Miami Heat on Wednesday) heading into Friday’s game, looked a step slow and lethargic against the Magic. Perhaps South Beach had something to do with that.

In any case, Orlando took advantage, thanks in large part due do their efforts on defense and the collective performance of their youngsters.

Defensively, the Magic were able to hold Golden State to 85 points on 91 possessions. A big reason for that early on was Orlando’s imposing interior defense. The Warriors tried in vain to score at the rim, as Nicholson, Harkless, and Gustavo Ayon collectively channeled their inner-Dikembe Mutombos and combined to block seven shots in the first quarter alone. For the game, Nicholson and Harkless finished with four blocks apiece (both career-highs), while Ayon had two blocks.

For the Magic, that block party set the tone defensively and Golden State drifted further away from the basket as the game wore on.

Overall, Redick, Nicholson, Moore, and Vucevic led the way for Orlando.

Redick riddled the Warriors with his three-point marksmanship and off-ball movement, making four three-pointers and finishing with 16 points, four rebounds, and four assists.

Nicholson was a smooth operator offensively, once again showcasing his excellent footwork and touch in the paint as well as his midrange jumper. As a result, Nicholson had another efficient outing, putting up 15 points (6-for-9 shooting) and tying a career-high with nine rebounds to go along with his career-high four blocks.

Like Redick, Moore did much of his damage behind the three-point line. Moore did nail a few long twos off the dribble, but it was his three three-pointers (all from the corners) that helped fuel his standout performance coming off the bench. Moore finished with 15 points and five assists.

As for Vucevic, he was a terror on the glass, pulling down a career-high 17 rebounds to go along with his 12 points.

When the Magic can get contributions like this from their youngsters to augment the core group of veterans, they’ll continue to be competitive against any team in the NBA. And when the youth plays like this, it shows the future is bright for Orlando.

MVP (Most Valuable Player)

Despite playing just 25 minutes against Golden State, there was little doubt that Nicholson was the Magic’s best player when he was on the floor. With each passing game, Nicholson is growing more comfortable and it’s being reflected in his numbers.

Defining Moment

Yes, Orlando played really well offensively throughout the game but it was their defense that fueled the victory. Who would have thought that the Magic would be one of the best defensive teams in the league this season?

AP Photo/John Raoux

BOX SCORE

Heading into Monday’s game against the Atlanta Hawks, the Orlando Magic were earning plaudits for going 3-2 on their West Coast road trip (which included impressive wins against the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors).

Unfortunately for the Magic, they were unable to keep the good vibes going against the Hawks, as Atlanta came into town and A-Town stomped Orlando. Don’t let the final score fool you. The game was not as closed as it seemed. The Hawks jumped out to a 16-2 lead in the first quarter and never looked back.

The Magic fell behind early because they were unable to get anything going offensively. Orlando is one of the worst offensive teams in the league, ranking 29th in Offensive Rating (only the Washington Wizards are worse), so it should come as no surprise that they hit a cold spell on offense. And it was mostly because the Magic settled for jumpers.

On the flipside, Atlanta didn’t do anything special against Orlando. The Hawks simply played good defense and displayed competence offensively.

Eventually, the Magic were able to get back into the game thanks to scoring runs of 9-2 and 10-2, which began in the latter stages of the first quarter and spanned up to the middle of the second quarter. Orlando even took the lead at 27-26 with 6:35 left in the period.

But Atlanta responded with runs of 6-0 and 9-0, pushing their lead back to double digits heading into halftime. After trading baskets to start the third quarter, the Hawks went on a quick 6-0 run and opened up a 17-point lead to blow the game wide open, which prompted head coach Jacque Vaughn to sub out the starting lineup en masse. The deficit ballooned to 19 points shortly thereafter for the Magic.

From there, Atlanta cruised to an easy victory over Orlando.

Again, the Hawks didn’t do anything special. Al Horford and Josh Smith had double-doubles for Atlanta, but they weren’t overwhelmingly dominant on both ends of the floor. Jeff Teague had a nice game, even though it seemed like he was sleepwalking through most of it.

This was a winnable game for the Magic. The problem was that Orlando got off to a slow start in the first quarter and were unable to dig themselves out of a hole. This is not the first time this has happened to the Magic and it won’t be the last. Can Orlando buck that trend sooner or later? It remains to be seen.

MVP (Most Valuable Player)

Al Horford helped lead the way for the Hawks, finishing with his seventh-consecutive double-double of the season (13 points, 13 rebounds, and four assists). Horford’s play of the game was his posterization of Nikola Vucevic in the second quarter.

X-Factor

Josh Smith also finished with a double-double (16 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocks) for Atlanta, but it was his defense that stood out the most. Smith did an excellent job of blocking and altering shots at the rim.

That Was … Easy

The Hawks jumped out to a 16-2 lead to start the game and were on cruise control the rest of the way. The Magic tried to make a game of it near the end, but their efforts were thwarted.