ORLANDO – Even before Michael Carter-Williams played Wednesday’s game – one that would wrap up his second 10-day contract with the Orlando Magic – the veteran point guard was confident that he’s shown enough to justify him remaining with the team for the rest of the season.
Carter-Williams can exude that sort of confidence because he has evolved into being an absolute difference—maker for a Magic team making a late-season playoff push. A contract for the remainder of the season is expected to come by Thursday for Carter-Williams so that he can continue to help the Magic in their fight for a spot in the playoffs.
Carter’s selflessness was evident on Wednesday morning when he said his thoughts revolve entirely around the Magic being successful instead of his own wishes for a contract that would cover the final three regular-season games.
``I mean, I’d love to be here and (the media) knows that, I’d love to be here for the rest of the season,’’ he said. ``I’m going in (Wednesday) focusing on winning the ball game and letting everything else fall into place. I’m not just saying that – I mean that. I’m not worrying about whether I play well or whether it dictates me coming back or not. I’m just going out there and trying to do anything I can for the team.’’
With the expiration of Carter-Williams’ second 10-day contract, the Magic must either sign the guard for the rest of the season or lose him. Even when they bring him back for the rest of the season, if the squad reaches the playoffs, it will have to release one player on the roster for Carter-Williams to be eligible to play in the postseason. The Magic requested and were granted an additional roster spot to sign Carter-Williams because of injuries to Mo Bamba (tibial stress fracture), Markelle Fultz (thoracic outlet syndrome), Isaiah Briscoe (right meniscus tear) and Timofey Mozgov (arthroscopic knee surgery).
Orlando came into Wednesday an impressive 6-2 since signing Carter-Williams on March 15 to stabilize the second unit with his superior defensive abilities and his willingness to push the pace offensively. In his first eight games with the Magic, the 6-foot-6 guard has averaged 5.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 0.9 blocks and 0.5 steals over 18.1 minutes a night.
Even more impressively, he has posted an individual defensive rating of 100.9 (points per 100 possessions), tying him for first on the team with close friend and fellow reserve Khem Birch among players in Orlando’s regular rotation. Magic head coach Steve Clifford, who worked with Carter-Williams previously in Charlotte, has been impressed with the impact the veteran guard has been able to have.
``Listen, he’s as good of an individual pick-and-roll defender as I’ve ever been around,’’ said Clifford, a veteran of 19 NBA seasons. ``He can really defend. With his pursuit, he’s relentless because he gives effort after effort. And he’s also big and rangy, but his instincts are also great. He’s good at all the things that you work on, but then he’s like (Magic forward) Jonathan (Isaac) in that he does stuff that you just can’t teach.’’
LAKELAND LOSES ON HEARTBREAKING FINISH: The Lakeland Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate, had a heartbreaking end to their season on Tuesday night in the single-elimination Eastern Conference Finals. Lakeland saw its one-point lead in the final seconds of overtime evaporate when Theo Pinson drilled a 3-pointer with four-tenths of a second remaining, lifting the Long Island Nets to a 108-106 win.
Had Lakeland been able to hold on, it would have advanced to a best-of-three G League Finals. Lakeland had four scorers with at least 20 points, led by Gabe York. Amile Jefferson, who spent most of March shuttling back and forth between Orlando and Lakeland, had 20 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three blocked shots.
``They had a great year and they played well (Tuesday) night and I watched a lot of it,’’ said Clifford, who called Lakeland head coach Stan Heath on Thursday. ``The shot that (Pinson) made was a great shot. They played well and I talked to (Heath) earlier today. He’s very happy (with how the season unfolded).’’
Jefferson was named All-G League third team on Wednesday.
IWUNDU’S GROWTH: While the rapidly blossoming Isaac would also have a case, forward Wes Iwundu has made a strong push to be considered as Orlando’s most improved player for the season.
Fresh off a career-best 16-point night in Toronto on Monday and a three-game stretch where he has made all five of his 3-point attempts, Iwundu has boosted his accuracy from beyond the arc to an impressive 36.6 percent this season.
That’s a big jump from his rookie season when he made just nine of 46 from beyond the 3-point arc for 19.6 percent. Already this season, he’s drilled 26 of 71 3-point tries.
Clifford has praised Iwundu all season for being a consistent worker. Usually, Iwundu is one of the first players to arrive at the team’s facility on the mornings before practices or games, using the extra time to get up more shots to perfect his form. The 6-foot-7, 195-pound Iwundu takes a lot of pride in seeing results from all the work he put in last summer and all throughout this season.
``It feels good, man, I can’t even lie,’’ Iwundu admitted. ``Where I’ve come to this point in my game, I’m feeling pretty good about myself. It’s just the hard work I’ve been putting in with Coach Ty (Corbin), Coach Bruce (Kreutzer) and all the shooting coaches, and even my teammates, it’s just about staying after it day by day and putting in the work. It got me to this point, and it’s a lot to build off of.’’
Iwundu has been able to take advantage of opponents often sending multiple defenders at Magic super sub Terrence Ross. When he can make shots – as he’s done most of the season – it gives the Magic second unit another scoring option and it potentially makes Ross even more dangerous.
``With T-Ross he’s going to grab a lot of attention, so it opens up shots for the other guys with him,’’ Iwundu said. ``But to our credit, we’ve got to step up and make shots. I’ve been doing a great job of that lately and other teammates have, too. We’ve just got to keep that same focus and put some things together.’’
UP NEXT: Orlando will be back on the practice court on Thursday to prepare for Friday’s home game against the Atlanta Hawks. The Magic have handled the Hawks all season, beating them three times so far. Trae Young, who is making a strong push to win the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award, has averaged 18 points and six assists against Orlando, but he’s shot just 16.7 percent from beyond the 3-point line. Young has been one of the of the NBA’s most dynamic players since the all-star break, averaging 24.6 points and 9.1 assists while making 43.5 percent of his shots and 36.1 percent of his 3-pointers.
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