Though the Orlando Magic certainly made strides in the second year of their post-Dwight Howard era--they finished with 23 victories, a three-game improvement over their league-worst finish the previous year--they did take a step back in one small, perhaps arbitrary aspect of the game: they completed five fewer alley-oops slams than they had one year prior. In fact, the Magic's nine total alley-oop dunks in the 2013/14 campaign ranks them 29th in the NBA: only the San Antonio Spurs, with six, had fewer such baskets.
Orlando Pinstriped Post has compiled the Magic's lob dunks--all nine of them--in a video embedded in this post. Take a look. You may also consider revisiting the 2012/13 edition of Infrequent Flyers.
Perhaps the biggest surprise is that Victor Oladipo didn't find himself involved in more of the Magic's lob action: the athletic rookie converted the team's first alley-oop slam of the season off an Arron Afflalo assist, and then went lob-less for the balance of the campaign. Then again, given the frequency with which he served as the team's primary ballhandler, he didn't often find himself in a position to streak up the floor unencumbered.
It's also somewhat surprising to see it took the Magic until Sunday's game against the Brooklyn Nets to successfully execute a set halfcourt alley-oop dunk play, as when E'Twaun Moore connected with Ronnie Price early in the second quarter. I'd be curious to know if the team could run such actions more often. Maurice Harkless' preternatural sense for when to cut backdoor and Jameer Nelson's on-point tosses would seem to make them natural partners.
Which of these dunks stands out the most to you? Can you pick a favorite? Did the presence or absence of any Magic player from this compilation surprise you? Let us know in the comments section.