ORLANDO – With his Orlando Magic mired on one of their worst swoons of the season, head coach Steve Clifford dug into treasure trove of experience – 38 years overall and 19 seasons in the NBA – and relayed a story that his squad could relate to and maybe use as motivation.
In 2013, when Clifford was in his first season as head coach of the Charlotte Hornets, that team started 14-15 but soon after fell into the throes of an eight-game losing streak. Rather than collapsing, that Hornets’ team responded to Clifford’s messages of daily improvement and purpose of play and won 28 of the next 44 games to reach the postseason.