ORLANDO – Getting to the playoffs in his second NBA season – and seeing what it did to the passion for Orlando Magic basketball among fans and witnessing what that level of play did to the intensity of the games – proved to be the perfect offseason motivator for forward Jonathan Isaac.
All offseason, Isaac said he’s been driven by the memories of the high-stakes games, the ear-splitting noise and the need to be great from the experiences he received last spring in the NBA playoffs. Isaac remembers how great it felt when the Magic stunned the eventual NBA champion Toronto Raptors in Game 1 and also the disappointment he was saddled with for weeks when they dropped the next four postseason games.