Wendell Carter is already shaping the Orlando Magic’s new defensive identity, even while the team is still ironing out the details.
Under Sean Sweeney, the Magic are working through a fresh approach on that end of the floor. They still switch, but the bigger emphasis now is staying home, crowding lanes and making sure Carter is used more as the anchor near the basket. That’s a shift, and Carter is right in the middle of it.
“It’s something new,” Wendell Carter said after shootaround Wednesday. “Some of the styles of play on the defensive end are new.
It was our third game into the season in New York. We’re still polishing things up.
But I think the biggest thing is we are sticking with it. Not overreacting to the first two games and understanding it’s an 82-game season, and we are going to continue to grow.”
That patience has been important because the early returns have been uneven. Orlando’s defensive rating sits at 111.9, which ranks 18th in the league, but the group followed that with a strong 102.0 defensive rating against the New York Knicks. Through three games, the Magic have put together what looks like about eight solid defensive quarters out of 12.
Carter’s value comes from how many different jobs he can handle. The Magic are still willing to switch him onto guards, and that usually invites opponents to test him in space.
He does not often complain, and he has shown again and again that he can be used wherever the team needs him. Against a post force like Nikola Jokic, he can battle inside.
Against a perimeter scorer, he can survive on an island.
Carter may not pile up the loud, eye-catching defensive plays that grab headlines, but around the league he is recognized as one of the more versatile defenders at his position.
Sean Sweeney made it clear that the center spot would be central to what he wants defensively, describing that role as the team’s middle linebacker, someone who can see everything in front of him and direct traffic. Carter fits that job description. The only issue now is that everyone is still learning the system.
“It’s something new,” Carter said. “Some of the styles of play on the defensive end are new.
It was our third game into the season in New York. We’re still polishing things up.
But I think the biggest thing is we are sticking with it. Not overreacting to the first two games and understanding it’s an 82-game season, and we are going to continue to grow.”
That same steady approach showed up again when he talked about the Knicks game.
“Staying persistent. Just sticking with the process,” Carter said after shootaround on Wednesday.
“I thought we did a good job of doing that in the New York game. There was a good sense of fight for the whole 48, which I really, really love on both sides of the court.
Just doing everything on the court with precision and pace. As long as we do that for the full 48, we have a good chance to win any game.”
The numbers back up Carter’s importance, even if they do not fully capture his impact. Through three games, Orlando has posted a 108.2 defensive rating with Carter on the floor, which is 3.7 points per 100 possessions better than the team’s overall mark.
He has also held opponents to 58.8 percent shooting at the rim, according to Second Spectrum, which ranks 12th in the league among centers who face at least five field goals per game at the rim. Last season, that number was 58.6 percent.
There are still some clear areas the Magic need to clean up, and rebounding is one of them. Carter has opened the season with 22 and 20 points in the first two games before finishing with nine against the Knicks, and he is averaging 8.7 rebounds per game with totals of seven, nine and 10. That production has been solid, but the team wants more on the glass.
Orlando’s 65.7 percent defensive rebound rate ranks 20th in the league. That means nearly one of every three misses is still finding the other team. The Magic are also giving up 14.7 second-chance points, which helps explain why a team that has been competitive around the rim still has plenty to tighten up.
With Carter on the floor, the Magic’s defensive rebound rate is 67.9 percent, which is still below where this team wants to be. Last year, Orlando was closer to 75 percent and among the league’s better rebounding teams.
The broader picture is simple: the defense is coming together, but it is not finished yet. Carter has been one of the bright spots in that process, even if the full picture is not showing up in the box score. If Orlando is going to become the defensive team it wants to be, Carter is going to have to keep doing exactly what he has been doing.
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