ORLANDO - Like last season, Chuma Okeke is stepping his game up in the second half of the year. He has scored in double figures in five of his last six games, averaging 13.3 points on 56.9 percent shooting overall and 47.4 percent 3-point shooting over this stretch.
Let’s take a deeper look into his recent surge as well as examine his defensive abilities.
Every team needs a reliable 3-and-D guy, and Okeke, at 6-foot-8, 230 pounds, fits that bill. Obviously, to be a quality 3-and-D guy, one needs to hit from 3-point range at a high rate, particularly in catch-and-shoot situations.
In the last six games combined, he made 10 of his 25 catch-and-shoot 3-point tries (40 percent), per Second Spectrum tracking data. Most of those attempts came from the corners, common for 3-and-D guys who loom in those spots and wait for kickout passes. Since Jan. 19, he has knocked down six of his 13 corner 3-point attempts (46.2 percent).
Before this latest six-game stretch, Okeke was really struggling from that region, making just eight of his first 35 shots from the 3-point corners.
Most of his shots this season have come off spot-ups, again typical for 3-and-D guys. He’s taken several shots off dribble handoffs, which the Orlando Magic as a team lead the league in with 7.4 shots attempted per game.
Okeke’s most underrated skill is his passing. He accumulated 24 assists in January, fifth most on the team and second among non-guards. The ball tends to move swiftly when he’s on the floor. Over the last six games combined, the Magic shot 50.2 percent overall and 41.9 percent from beyond the arc when he was on the court. When he was off the floor, they shot 45.1 percent overall and 30.8 percent from downtown, both team lows.
In January, Okeke averaged a team-high 1.8 steals per game. His 23 steals this month is tied for ninth most in the league. Late in the third quarter of Orlando’s win over Dallas on Sunday, the 23-year-old pickpocketed Luka Doncic and then raced the other way for a breakaway dunk.
The other thing defensively Okeke continues to do is deflect passes. He’s averaging 2.2 of them this season, second most on the Magic behind Jalen Suggs’ 2.7. His 88 deflections are the sixth most among second-year NBA players. He also leads Orlando in total defensive loose balls recovered with 21 of them.
The Magic have been one of the league’s best defensive teams lately. In January, their defensive rating was 107.8, tied with Cleveland for seventh best. When Okeke has been on the floor this season, Orlando’s defensive rating is 107.9. When he’s been off, it’s 112.1.
Playing looser is helping Okeke make strides this season. There’s still a lot he can add to his repertoire such as a post-up game, which with his size and strength could make him a much greater offensive threat.
“Just going out there having fun and realizing that the work I’m putting in after practice is paying off, and just going out there confident,” he said. “My teammates believe in me. I believe in myself. Just playing the game the right way.”
The Magic went 3-2 on their now complete five-game homestand. Okeke said after the last of those victories that the energy from the Amway Center crowd played a big factor in their success.
“The crowd was great tonight. They brought a lot of energy,” he said. “When we went on our runs, they helped us continue those runs, and they helped us come away with the win, too.”