Magic guard Elfrid Payton is falling behind in preseason because of a hamstring injury.
The Orlando Magic have known for months that the beginning of their regular season will be brutal. After they open a week from tonight against the Washington Wizards, the Magic will play the Oklahoma City Thunder, New Orleans Pelicans, Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors.
The schedule hasn’t changed, but it now seems more difficult than anyone originally expected.
Elfrid Payton’s continued absence because of a nagging hamstring injury likely will diminish the Magic’s on-court chemistry at the outset of the season. The secondyear point guard has missed three consecutive exhibition games, will not play when the Magic host the Pelicans tonight and might not be available for the preseason finale Friday night.
“Hamstrings are tricky,” Payton said. “So I just want to make sure I’m 100 percent before I get back out there. I don’t want to re-aggravate [it].”
Payton’s layoff wouldn’t be so disconcerting if he had played effectively before he suffered his injury on Oct. 10. But Payton struggled in the Magic’s second and third preseason exhibitions; he encountered early foul trouble and looked out of
sync.
An adjustment period was expected this month for the entire team, not just Payton. New coach Scott Skiles has installed a more structured offensive system and a brandnew defensive scheme, and everyone knew it would take the team awhile to adjust and build confidence. Yet Payton has missed an essential part of the preseason schedule — a segment of October that was earmarked for improvement.
“We just don’t need him to be back,” Skiles said. “We need him to start playing well when he’s back. The rest of the guys are really cutting, moving, and we need Elfrid to buy into that and come back with some pop and give us a lift.”
The Magic also have dealt with the absence of combo forward Aaron Gordon recently. After Gordon made his preseason debut on Oct. 13, he sat out three practices and last weekend’s exhibition game in Rio de Janeiro because of soreness in his surgically repaired left foot.
Gordon returned to practice Tuesday, and Skiles said Gordon likely will play 15 to 20 minutes tonight and perhaps 15 to 20 minutes on Friday.
Skiles has wanted to see how Gordon and Tobias Harris mesh when they man the forward spots simultaneously, but the duo hasn’t played together yet.
“It’s obviously a very important last two games,” Gordon said. “We’ve want to get our chemistry going. But we’re both very, very good basketball players, and we’re going to figure it out.”
It’s unclear how much more time Payton will need for his hamstring to heal completely, but Skiles sounded optimistic Payton will be ready for the opener.
“Between Friday and next week, we’d like to get some good practice time in and get him healthy for that, and we’ll have to play Game 1 having not had a full complement of guys all together,” Skiles said. “But we’re not the only team doing that.”
If Payton can’t play in the opener, C.J. Watson likely would start at point guard, Skiles said.
Watson is about to enter his ninth NBA season, and he would offer the Magic an experienced, capable alternative in the starting lineup. Watson also is a 38 percent career shooter from 3-point range, and his presence on the floor would help the Magic’s spacing.
Payton appeared in all 82 of the Magic’s games last season, and he can’t recall missing a game in high school or in college.
“It’s upsetting that I can’t be out there competing with my teammates,” Payton said. “But I’ve got to listen to my body.”
jrobbins@orlando sentinel.com