The Orlando Magic is having a fantastic season, building on last year’s success and riding an improved defense towards what could be a 60-win campaign. However, it’s reasonable to wonder if Orlando is hitting a wall, after losing six of 14 games in February, a record that might have been .500 for the month had it not been for a great comeback against the Sixers Saturday night.

The Magic is firmly entrenched in first place in the Southeast Division, and isn’t really being challenged for third overall in the Eastern Conference, but with Cleveland not slowing down, Orlando is slipping a bit further away from the Cavs and is not gaining on Boston, either. Is this a legitimate contender? The talent is definitely there, but is this team tough enough to go deep in the playoffs? That’s the big question facing the Magic as the season winds down.

Adding Rafer Alston at the deadline was a stroke of genius, plugging a big hole left by the injured Jameer Nelson. Hedo Turkoglu is starting to play more like the man who was the NBA’s Most Improved Player last season as opposed to the inconsistent, often poor-shooting performer he’s been most of the season. Orlando lost Mickael Pietrus to another injury, but Courtney Lee has stepped in admirably and, with his recent performance, is providing the Magic with the most consistent play it’s gotten out of the two-guard spot all season.

Best of all, Orlando comes home for a pair of games this week in the hopes that it can start to string some wins together after a middling few weeks. If it hopes to successfully chase down Cleveland or Boston, the Magic can’t afford any more letdowns this season.

While the Magic offense isn’t quite as good as it was last season, when it was the top-scoring team in the East, it’s not exactly chopped liver this year, remaining among the best in the association.

Rashard Lewis was a big part of that attack earlier this season. In fact, he was on a serious tear the last time we checked in on him, but his touches have been down the past couple of months, and February was a real bust, as his shooting went into the tank. Less shots + less makes = unhappy fantasy owners. On the plus side, Lewis snapped a slump and ended the month on a high Saturday, leading the way with 8-for-12 shooting from the floor and 2-for-2 from the line for 23 points. Orlando, one of the most prolific 3-point shooting teams in the NBA, was filling it up Saturday with 15 treys, and Lewis led the way, canning five of them (on eight tries) and pitching in with three assists as well. And with shootout inducing Phoenix coming to town Tuesday, Lewis has a chance to put together back-to-back solid efforts for his owners for the first time since January. Lewis still isn’t getting any more touches than he did last season, and when he is getting the looks, the fact that his shot has been in decline for three years running is a concern. He remains an amazing source of 3-pointers – give him at least one in 52 straight games – but I could see him slipping into the fourth round in next year’s drafts.

Like I said, the Magic likes to employ the deep ball. In fact, Orlando tied a franchise mark last night when it heaved up 37 shots from beyond the arc Saturday. Holy long distance attack, Batman. Lee wasn’t exactly red hot, but he led the parade with 12 attempts among his team-high 18 shots for the game. That’s the most touches the rook has ever had in a game – a fantastic sign for his owners. By the way, you can count me among his newest owners, as I got fed up waiting for Rudy Fernandez to earn more PT in Portland, dumping the Spaniard for a different freshman. So far, I’m pretty stoked about the results.

Saturday’s win over Philly was huge. Coming off a disheartening home loss to a severely struggling Detroit team on Friday, there was definitely reason to begin questioning whether Orlando was a contender or pretender. But coming back from 11 points down in the fourth quarter in Philly against a Sixers team that plays pretty well at home will help shut up the critics. The Magic dominated the fourth quarter, outscoring Philadelphia 36-20, with Lee draining 13 points himself, the most he’s ever scored in a single stanza. Orlando is now 21-9 on the road, third best in the NBA, and that’s got to scare the crap out of any potential playoff opponent because stealing wins on the road during the postseason is what makes a champion. So as long as the Magic maintain its no fear policy on the road, it will be handful for anyone.

If the season ended today, Orlando would meet the 76ers in the first round — a match up that the Magic would probably be chomping at the bit over. Orlando has now won four straight and eight of its past nine games over Philly. By taking all three games against the Sixers this year, Orlando has swept them for the first time since 1997-98. That Magic squad was a .500 team led by Penny Hardaway, by the way.

The thing about the Magic is it really lives and dies by the 3-ball. It had made just 10-of-30 through three quarters, well below its season average of 39 per cent. So you’d think Orlando would scale back on the perimeter game in the fourth quarter, right? Uh, maybe not. The Magic attempted another seven treys in the final quarter, hitting five of them to change the complexion of the game. Like any jump shooting team, Orlando is prone to slumps, but full marks for plowing through on Saturday.

I know this has been coming for a few years now, but is anyone else having a tough time adjusting to a world in which the Atlanta Hawks are a very good team? Case in point – this team was cruising through the 2008 portion of the schedule, with a 21-10 record as of New Years, but then they slumped, losing five of six, including four straight. Ahah! Here comes the great fold, right? Uh, maybe not. Atlanta has quickly turned things right around, taking three of its past four, including both ends of a back-to-back earlier this week.

Now the Hawks fly home for a two-game set with a very good opportunity to build on this roll. Friday, Milwaukee pays a visit, and while the Bucks have been decent lately, they are not exactly a powerhouse on the road. Sunday evening, the Hawks will host Phoenix, a decent road club, but one that isn’t exactly setting the world on fire in recent games.

It’s not too late for the Hawks to make a move on Southeast Division leading Orlando, but the way the Magic has been going, Atlanta will have to really turn it on over the final two and a half months of the season.

Improved defense has been the key as Atlanta has moved up the ranks this season, bridging the gap on the elite teams in the East. There’s been nothing wrong with the team’s O, but it has been D driving the improvement.

The Hawks have already had to deal with their share of injuries this season, and things aren’t currently easing on the health front. A concussion has kept Marvin Williams sidelined for the past couple of games and, considering he has yet to practice, there’s still no clear indication when he’ll be back. Al Horford (knee) will probably miss his seventh straight game Friday. Acie Law missed the last game with a bruised quad, and he remains day-to-day, although that shouldn’t have much of an effect on the team (other than the fact that starting PG Mike Bibby will see a few extra ticks of action).

Atlanta has had its way in its own building against Milwaukee, winning four straight (average margin of victory of 13.5 points), and considering the Bucks have only won nine of 26 on the road, I don’t expect a different result Friday. Atlanta is a superb 16-4 at home, having won seven of the past nine at Philips Arena, while Milwaukee has gone down in five of its last seven tries on the road.

The injury to Williams must be particularly frustrating to owners as it continues a disappointing season from the former Tar Heel standout. He got out of the gates strong this season, but has been sliding since, and his PT has slipped along with his play. We ranked Williams as the 35th best forward heading into the season and were calling for a season of growth from him. Well, it hasn’t happened, and he’s barely a top 50 forward now as a result. I’m encouraged by his slightly improved shooting this season, and there’s still plenty of time for him to bounce back, but concussions are tricky beasts, and that has to have you worried if you own him.

Law, by the way, has completely evaporated as a fantasy entity, having not played more than eight minutes in a game in the last two weeks. Before getting hurt, he was shooting the ball better, but with starter Bibby enjoying a great rebound year, Law’s PT has dropped so precipitously, that at this point, there’s no reason to mention him again. So I won’t.

Bibby, by the way, has provided great value for a guy you probably snagged with a seventh round pick. On Tuesday, he went off for a season-high 31 points with six assists, five steals and five treys. Sick! Bibby has really picked up his defense lately, recording 11 steals in the last three games. Holy Thievery Corporation, Batman. While he’s been the Hawks’ second-leading scorer this year (16.6 PPG), the best part of Bibby’s recovery for you playing in 9-cat leagues is his turnover rate. He’s never been better at protecting the pumpkin (1.5 TOs per game) than he’s done this season. All things considered, Bibby is almost all the way back to the level of play he showed in his glory seasons with the Kings. One concern: we did allude to the extra PT he’s seen with his backup out, but coach Mike Woodson is seriously riding his starting PG lately, with Bibby averaging 43.3 MPG in the past three, including 45 minutes on Tuesday. He’s played at least 40 minutes in half of his games this month. That worries me a bit, as while extra PT can be sweet, this is a bit much.

With Horford out, Zaza Pachulia has gotten a chance to start and he responded Tuesday with his best offensive output of the season – 18 points – and a block. As we projected, Pachulia has been the Hawks’ top big off the bench, but even when he’s starting, he doesn’t exactly rack up fantasy-worthy numbers, especially considering that he doesn’t block enough shots for a big man. He’s having a better season than last year, we’ll give him that, but Pachulia simply isn’t being aggressive on a consistent basis to get easy points at the line. If you’re desperate for help at centre, give him a look. But expect plenty of frustrating nights.

Look for Bibby to turn in another big night Friday against Milwaukee. Not only is he absolutely balling right now (20.5 PPG in his last six games), but he loves beating up on the Bucks, averaging over 19 PPG in his 17 career tilts against them.