3 Keys for Magic in Sunshine State Rivalry with Heat: Bench and more

Preseason is the time to experiment. Whether it's lineup combinations, offensive schemes, or defensive coverages, if there's any idea that might work but feels too risky for the regular season, now's the time to break it out.

Noah Penda's energy continues to stand out in just about any lineup he's in.

Orlando can mix and match different lineups and 3-man combos to see how they work together, whether its a rookie who is guaranteed a spot on the team like Penda or other newcomers who are still fighting for a role, or in some cases, simply fighting to make the final roster.

Jamal Cain played 16 minutes in the opener and 10 minutes against Phili. Lester Quinones, Reece Beekman, Orlando Robinson have gotten some burn.

For the end-of-the-bench guys fighting to make the team, now's a great time to gauge their talent against this level of competition, and if any obvious chemistry on the court pops out in the process, that may be worth tracking when it comes to deciding the final 15th spot on the roster.

For example, the league never told the Warriors this Reddit strategy of 'locking arms of the other four starters to form a ring around Steph Curry so he can take open shots' wouldn't work. The time is now.

2. Fans Dig The Long Ball - Monitoring Orlando's 3pt Volume

One stat to keep an eye on this preseason as Orlando finds a rhythm is simply their 3pt volume and efficiency.

How many threes are the team creating and making?

After last season, there's nowhere to go but up. Even seeing the team launch an average amount of 3pt shots, with an average team 3P%, would be a dramatic improvement into the daily life of the offense.

Through two preseason games, the team is launching 3s and making 3s at nearly a middle-of-the-pack rate, which is a pretty big step in the right direction. Keep in mind this sample size is about as small and irrelevant for predicting the future as statistically possible, but even so, its promising.

Let's not forget what this squad led by downhill big wing forces do best; in those same two games, Orlando has racked up 36.5 Free Throws Per Game (T-2nd), 9.5 Blocks Per Game (2nd) and 56 Rebounds Per Game. (1st)

If and when a team that ranks Top-4 in basically everything else finally starts raining threes to boot, giving them a fighting chance every night... look out.

3. Will Wendell Carter Jr. match Bam Adebayo's two-way impact?

When I joked with Wendell about who would win a hypothetical 2-v-2 game between Wendell and Angel Reese against Bam Adebayo and A'ja Wilson, Carter joked he and Angel would 'definitely 11-0' Bam and A'ja.

That was Bam had a front row seat to Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces winning their 3rd wnba title in four years, though. He's a new Bam now.

Beyond the fun hypotheticals of Reese vs. Wilson and how they actually defend each other pretty well, what makes this matchup so interesting on the NBA side is that Wendell and Bam have a case as the two most versatile centers in the league when you add up all the things they do well.

Both Carter and Adebayo are strong screeners in the DHO game, smart connective playmakers when hitting off-ball cutters, glass-crashing rebounders, strong rim-finishers, switchable defenders practically any position 1-5, and legit rim-protectors for elite team defenses.

Who will take the bragging rights this round after yet another Magic-Heat Florida duel?