How a 5-20 slump helped turn the Magic into one the NBA’s most surprising teams

Paolo Banchero quickly understood how hard life in the NBA can be.

The No. 1 pick in the 2022 draft, Banchero immediately produced on an individual basis, racking up points in bunches and putting himself on the path that ultimately led him to the league's Rookie of the Year award.

As a team, however, the Magic struggled. They lost their first five games, then went on a nine-game losing streak that gave them the NBA's worst record — 5-20 — to date a year ago.

“The losses we had early on kind of killed the rest of our season,” Banchero told ESPN.

Orlando finished 34-48 thanks to a 29-28 record over the final two thirds of last season. But that vast improvement was overshadowed by the terrible start and left the Magic with the sixth-worst record in the league at season's end.

The combination of Orlando's youth and where the Magic finished left them off the radar early this season. But that is no longer the case.

As Orlando travels to Cleveland on Wednesday to face the Cavaliers, the Magic are 14-6 — third in the Eastern Conference and fourth overall — behind a franchise-record nine-game winning streak snapped Saturday by the Brooklyn Nets.

And while a number of factors have contributed to this strong start – becoming one of the best defenses in the league; the growth of young players like Banchero (21), Franz Wagner (22) and Jalen Suggs (22); and advice from third-year coach Jamahl Mosley. Banchero said conversations over the summer about the importance of a strong start would have been crucial in Orlando's rise to prominence.

“I remember very well, in the summer, having dinner with [Mosley] and other players and talk about this exact situation,” Banchero said.

“Start well and try to get as many wins as possible in the first couple of months, just because you know how important those are later in the year.”

As a result, Orlando finds itself in a very different situation than on December 6.

Since that day, the Magic are 43-34 – a better record than, among others, the Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors over that span.

And while the way Orlando played after its dismal start was largely overlooked nationally, internally it showed Mosley that his team was capable of being a playoff contender as soon as this season — assuming, c That is to say, it can avoid sinking into another hole.

“They all felt that 5-20 start,” Mosley told ESPN. “[But] how we played defense, it was good basketball. And so I think the guys recorded that and recognized, “Hey, you know what? We need to get off to a good start because that's how we know we can play. But we have to prove it. …

“[Players] took ownership of it. This was an important and key element. »

The Magic's elite defense leads the way.

Orlando currently ranks fourth in the league in defense, allowing 109.3 points per 100 possessions despite missing starters Markelle Fultz and Wendell Carter Jr. for extended periods of the season due to injuries, rookie Anthony Black and with Indiana Pacers reject Goga Bitadze replacing both admirably. .

“These last two games we slipped, but [defense] That's how we set the tone during the game,” Wagner said Saturday in Brooklyn. “We go out and run and get easy points in transition. We need to make sure we get back to that. »

Orlando's formula – a top-tier defense taking over for an average offense (Orlando is 15th this season) – has proven effective.

The Magic have already posted impressive wins against the defending champion Denver Nuggets and the two favorites to win the East, the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks, in the first six weeks of the season. (Despite beating Boston in group play, the Magic narrowly missed the quarterfinals of the season tournament due to a three-point tiebreaker and point difference.)

But the Magic's next set of games will determine whether their hot start lasts. Over the next month, the Magic will face the Cavaliers and Celtics twice each, as well as single games against Eastern contenders like the Bucks, Miami Heat, Indiana Pacers, New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers before embarking on a Western Conference road trip against the Suns, Warriors, Sacramento Kings and Nuggets.

“I think it’s good for this group,” Mosley said. “I think it's good to meet expectations. It's good for this group to meet all the challenges. … With these teams coming [on our schedule]you will find different experiences, different types [of] style of play, is going to be guarded in different ways. So this will continue to help us learn and grow as a group. »

Banchero, for his part, is not shying away from the challenge that the next calendar presents. Those summer dinner conversations were predicated on the belief that Orlando's play over the final two-thirds of last season was the true indication of this group's place in the league — not the 5-20 start that overwhelmed him.

And while many fans and NBA pundits might be surprised to see the Magic sitting near the top of the East, Banchero and his teammates see their debut as a natural and lasting step forward despite the grueling few weeks ahead of them .

“I think we know internally how good we can be,” Banchero said. “Going back to last year, once we got healthy, we started to really compete and win a lot of games. And even though we didn't make the playoffs, we kind of felt change start to happen.

“The start we had obviously shocked a lot of people, but I wouldn't say it shocked anyone in the building.”