Turnovers Continue to be Central Issue Early in Season

Every statistical category is important, to some level. But, arguably, no category carries more weight than turnovers. Turning the ball over, especially when they are the live-ball kind, does a lot of damage. Obviously, they prevent a shot from going up. But they also make it easier for the opponent to score in transition. Then, they are momentum destroyers. It’s impossible to get a flow going when everyone is left scrambling. The Magic, after turning it over 25 times for 36 Suns points on Thursday, now rank 28^th in turnovers and 27^th in opponent points off those mistakes. They came in a variety pack in Pheonix. Some were players just simply losing grip of the ball; some came from ill-advised passes; there were a few illegal screens; and other times the Suns made a great defensive play to cause disruption. The absences of Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs, two of Orlando’s main ball handlers and playmakers, is obviously making it harder for the Magic to protect the ball. 

3-Point Shooting, on Offense and Defense, Always in Focus

The only way to have success in this high volume 3-point shooting era is to either take enough threes to make enough or just simply shoot a high percentage without necessarily taking a surplus of them. If you do both, then you are in the driver’s seat. On defense, it’s imperative to limit the opponent from either taking many or making many. Right now, for example, teams like Philadelphia and Toronto are great at limiting opponents from beyond the arc without relying on making a ton of themselves. Then you have a team like Boston that takes a ton of them to make enough. The Magic currently are middle of the pack when it comes to their own 3-point shooting. And while they’ve done a decent job getting opponents off the 3-point line, those teams have collectively shot 36.7 percent from downtown, which ranks 24^th. 

Wendell Carter Jr. Off to Great Start

A bright spot for Orlando has been the play of Carter, who racked up season highs of 27 points and 13 rebounds in Thursday’s contest in Phoenix and is averaging 14.3 points and 9.4 rebounds. He’s shooting 65.6 percent from the field overall and 40 percent from 3-point range. Franz Wagner’s excellent playmaking has helped him. These two have always had a great connection. Wagner, who dished out a career-high 15 assists against the Suns, has found Carter often for easy baskets. They’ve connected on six alley-oops so far this season, including three times in Phoenix. 

Quote of the Night

“We have to do a better job — and I pride myself on a lot of it — of communicating early. It’s a two-sided thing. Not just talking, but also receiving information and making sure you are in the right spots. But this is a team that wants to be right, wants to be good. We know what we are capable of. We are going to figure it out. It’s an internal thing. We are going to figure it out." – Carter on the team’s turnover issue