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Tour of Washington D.C. Museum Helps Team Bond

Josh Cohen
Digital News Manager

By John Denton
Dec. 6, 2016

WASHINGTON D.C. – Frank Vogel’s time and experience in the NBA have taught him that it takes more than just talented players or solid Xs and Os to have a great basketball team. That’s why the Orlando Magic coach has gone to great lengths to help his team build strong bonds off the court.

Two days after stopping off at the Philadelphia Museum of Art to see the famed ``Rocky’’ statue and climb the ``Rocky steps’’ as a team, Vogel gave his squad an off day from practice on Monday so that it could visit the newly opened Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

The Magic spent approximately 90 minutes inside the museum, which is located close to the Washington Monument and The White House. Vogel alerted the team of the cancelled practice and the field trip on Monday morning following the film review of Sunday’s win in Detroit.

``We like to do team-building things together to help our chemistry and togetherness and we went to the new museum that they have here in D.C. about African American history,’’ said Vogel, who pointed out that the NBA and the NBA Players Association both donated $1 million to the construction of the museum. ``It was great for our guys and it’s a great place to visit.’’

With nine new players on the roster and many of the returning players playing for their fourth coach in three years, Vogel knew coming into this season that building camaraderie would be important for the Magic. He and his staff have arranged several team dinners on road trips, and the two group stops on this road trip have been helpful, Magic guard Evan Fournier said.

``When you’re on the road you get to do extra stuff together and spending a little time at the museum was very interesting,’’ Fournier said. ``It’s in the heart of the city, right next to the (Washington Monument). … (Vogel) knows the importance of team bonding. He’s gone deep into the playoffs and he knows what it takes to be a good team. It’s not about what you do just on the court; it’s off-the-court (bonding) as well.’’

Added Magic forward Jeff Green: ``I think it was more important for the information that was covered about African Americans, in general. It wasn’t about just bonding, but it was about us gaining knowledge of the avenues that African Americans paved for us today. I think that’s what it was most about.’’

SURGING SERGE: In the Magic’s first 21 games, Serge Ibaka has led them in scoring six times. In 524 games with Oklahoma City – the team that he played with for seven seasons prior to last June’s trade to Orlando – Ibaka led the Thunder in scoring just 10 times, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

Clearly, the Magic have given Ibaka more of a primary role in the offense and have allowed him to show off his talents without having to play in the shadows of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

Scott Brooks, now the head coach in Washington, was Ibaka’s coach for six of his seven seasons in OKC. The two first started working together when Ibaka spoke little-to-no English and they had to communicate through very basic sign language.

Did Brooks ever see Ibaka morphing into this kind of dynamic offensive player in Orlando? Yes, he said on Tuesday, because Ibaka is so unique with his skill set.

``He was a big part of our success (in OKC), he’s a two-way player and one of the best,’’ Brooks said. ``He’s very unique. A lot of bigs who shoot the ball well, but can’t block shots and a lot of guys who block shots can’t shoot the ball well. He’s not just a stretch-four; he can also block shots. Nothing against (Ibaka), but he had two guys (in Durant and Westbrook) who were better scorers than him and he was never going to be the focal point.’’

Brooks said another area of growth has been the way that Ibaka defends 3-point shooters – something that he’s often asked to do when he switches assignments on pick-and-roll plays or he must check big men who are as talented of shooters as he is. Ibaka wasn’t always as skilled at doing that as he is now, Brooks stressed.

``The game has changed and there was a transition where he struggled at times guarding the shooting (power forwards),’’ Brooks said. ``Give him a lot of credit because he really locked in, he became cognizant of who he was guarding and he stayed at home.

``One year he averaged (3.7) blocks and he was always among the league leaders,’’ Brooks continued. ``Now, he has great experience and he can pick and choose when to block a shot and he can also guard guys who can shoot threes now. He struggled with that four years ago, but it took him about half a season to get that down. Now, he’s solid on both ends.’’

FAMILY AFFAIR: Orlando’s two-day trip to Washington, D.C. served as something of a homecoming for Green, who was born in nearby Cheverly, Md., grew up in North Brentwood, Md. and attended high school in Hyattsville, Md. Green, who also starred locally in college at Georgetown University, was expecting 30 family members and friends at Tuesday’s game against the Wizards.

``I’ve got a good group coming,’’ he said. ``About 30-some people, but that’s every year.’’

Considering that everyone wants to play well in front of family and friends, it should come as no surprise that Green has thrived while playing in Washington, D.C. His career scoring average while playing in Washington is 19 points per game, and the most points he’s ever scored in a road game (39 on Jan. 22, 2014) came in Washington while playing for the Celtics.

Green has bounced back and forth between starting (480 times) and coming off the bench (176 times) throughout his nine-year NBA career, but clearly he’s been more comfortable with the Magic as a reserve. In 12 games coming off the bench, he’s averaged 10.4 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 41 percent overall and 34.9 percent from the 3-point line. Conversely, in his eight games as a starter Green averaged just 5.9 points and 2.1 rebounds on 28.8 percent shooting and 13.6 percent accuracy from 3-point range.

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