Do you believe in the Orlando Magic?

The fledgling season is underway and the Magic are, dare I say, not a train wreck. For the majority of the last decade, Orlando has been as bleak a franchise as there has been in the league. They lacked talent, development and direction, and most times, all three.

But as the NBA calendar turns, hope springs eternal. Twelve days into the burgeoning season the Magic are a feel-good surprise, sitting atop the standings in the East.

On Thursday morning, the team’s official Twitter account tweeted this out, and it’s really beautiful:

https://twitter.com/OrlandoMagic/status/923529003897643010

And it wasn’t like they rolled through a train of powderpuffs either. First they won the battle of Florida versus the Heat. Three days later, they went into Cleveland and beat the reigning conference champs, only to follow it up by taking down the upstart Nets after losing to them four days prior.

Read More: The Brooklyn Nets are right on schedule

Then, the feather in their cap. On Friday night, the Magic blew out the previously undefeated Spurs by 27.

(Yes, they then lost to the Hornets on Sunday night, but the Hornets are pretty good.)

The biggest reason for the turnaround seems to be Frank Vogel putting out commonsensical lineups. Figuring out his big man rotation has gone a long way in the improved play, no longer fitting square pegs in round holes.

Last year’s idea of playing Aaron Gordon at small forward with a front line of Bismack Biyombo and Nikola Vucevic made everyone’s eyes bleed. Now they’re treating Biyombo as a sunk cost and the 15-minute-per-game guy he really is. And that’s fine. Biyombo was never worth the exorbitant deal he got, but he’s an effective player in a limited role.

Gordon missed two games with an ankle injury and came back absolutely electrifying. In the win over Brooklyn, he slapped up a 41-point, 14-rebound masterpiece, which included going 5-for-5 from 3-point range. Gordon, a career 28.9 percent shooter from 3 heading into the season, clearly put in work over the summer. His shooting stroke looks good and that’s important for a team thirsty for spacing. He’s now 10-of-17 from distance to start the year. With all that hype he fell flat on last year, he appears ready to fulfill his promise in his natural position.

Vucevic is another one who extended his game in the offseason and now wets 3s. He’s putting up five attempts beyond the arc per game and hitting two of them, all while averaging 21-and-9.  Vucevic has never been a plus defender, but he’s even averaging almost two blocks per game so far.

Evan Fournier has been the galvanizing presence in the backcourt, especially in Elfrid Payton’s absence. The Frenchman is pouring in a cool 22 points per game.

The new additions have been nice contributors as well. Jonathon Simmons, Marreese Speights and rookie Jonathan Isaac are fitting in seamlessly and filling their roles. Heck, even Mario Hezonja kinda, sorta showed signs of life if you squint hard enough.

Next: The Raptors have some new kids on the bench

The caveat of #SmallSampleSize is obviously in play, but through Oct. 29, the Magic are second in offensive rating and No. 13 in defensive rating in the entire league.

Not that it’d be a high bar to clear, but this could be the best team they’ve had since the Stan Van Gundy/Dwight Howard union disintegrated. The early returns have undoubtedly been encouraging. Who knows, in a season with a ton of uncertainty and the bottom rungs of the Eastern Conference playoff ladder up for grabs, Orlando could make their first postseason in six years. If they do, it’ll certainly be magical.