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Just make the playoffs!
That’s it.
That’s the mantra.
That’s all the Orlando Magic have to do to turn a frustrating season into a forgivable one.
Correction: Just make the playoffs — and don’t get swept!
That’s all the Magic must do to turn a disappointing season into a digestible one.
Let’s be honest, shall we? This wasn’t how it was supposed to go and the expectations we were supposed to have.
The Magic were supposed to ascend. After an eye-opening 2023–24 campaign in which they unexpectedly finished as the No. 5 seed in the East and took the Cleveland Cavaliers to a dramatic seven-game series, this year was supposed to be the launch pad; the season Orlando planted its flag as a serious a contender. With youth and talent, depth and defense, chemistry and camaraderie, the Magic weren’t just a feel-good story anymore. They were for real.
Then the season started — and, well, it got complicated.
Now, months later, with the regular season ending, the script has flipped again. Somehow, some way, the Magic have fought their way back to relevance. They won eight of 10 to secure home-court advantage in the Play-In tournament. They’re as healthy as they can be without their starting point guard (Jalen Suggs) and their inspirational sixth man (Moe Wagner), both out for the season.
I give coach Jamahl Mosley credit. No, not like earlier in the season when I wrote that he should be the favorite for Coach of the Year when the Magic were fourth in the East and winning games despite their two stars — Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner — being out simultaneously for a combined 54 games with the same injury (torn oblique aka abdominal muscle).
While the season hasn’t gone according to plan, it hasn’t gone off the rails either. Banchero and Wagner are back and playing like the stars that they are as the Magic try to overcome the gut punch of losing Suggs, their tenacious defensive anchor and emotional leader, for the rest of season with a string of injuries.
The trio of Banchero, Wagner and Suggs, the planned nucleus of everything Orlando wants to be, played just six games and 97 minutes together this year. Without them all on the floor, chemistry stalled. Roles shifted. Momentum sputtered. And while the Magic have certainly fallen down the standings, at least they haven’t fallen apart.
Despite that they remain the worst 3-point shooting team in the league in an era when championships are won from beyond the arc, the Magic have continued to grind, defend, compete, believe … believe in themselves when most of us gave up on them several weeks ago.
Now, they have a chance to make us believers once again. They’re playing better; much better. They’ve gone from an absolutely awful 3-point-shooting team to a just a subpar 3-point shooting team. Their defense is still one of the best in the league, even without Suggs. Paolo is looking like the future All-NBA player he was predicted to be and the Franz is back to slicing up defenses with his unique blend of size, skill, and savvy.
“I’m extremely proud of this group,” Mosley says. “Just being able to endure through all the things — the injuries, the bump back, guys in, guys out … I’m proud of our guys for being as tough as they are and as resilient as they are and continuing to push through no matter the circumstance.”
I don’t know about you, but I’m actually looking forward to this Play-In tournament. Yes, maybe it’s a gimmick, but it’s pure drama — and opportunity — for a team like Orlando. At home, with the crowd roaring and playoff energy buzzing in the building, the Magic will take the court for a do-or-die, survive-and-advance battle. It will be NCAA-Tournament, edge-of-your-seat energy and tension.
Granted, the goal before the season was much more ambitious: Earn a high seed, win a playoff series, maybe even sneak into the East finals as a dark horse contender.
Now?
Not so much.
Now the goal is simple, but more urgent.
Just make the playoffs, where the Magic will hopefully play the defending champion Boston Celtics.
That’s not a punishment. That’s a privilege.
This is why we all love the postseason. This is why fans sit through the load-managed games of the regular season. This is why players push themselves through injury rehab. This is why coaches miss their kids’ Little League games and dance recitals and front offices try to stay patient when the outside world demands instant results.
Just for this — a shot at playoff basketball. Real playoff basketball. Heart-pounding, possession-by-possession, legacy-defining playoff basketball.
The pressure. The stakes. The unpredictability.
That’s what’s on the line starting this week.
And for Magic players, staff members and fans who have been through hell and back this season, this is all they can ask for.
A chance.
Maybe they bow out in the Play-In.
Maybe they shock Boston in seven.
Maybe they flame out.
Maybe they catch fire.
This is why they play the game and why we watch it.
A regular season filled with oblique injuries and even more oblique expectations and narratives is over. Now, the mission and the mantra is clear.
Just make the playoffs!
Because once you’re in, anything is possible.
Email me at [email protected]. Hit me up on X (formerly Twitter) @BianchiWrites and listen to my Open Mike radio show every weekday from 6 to 9:30 a.m. on FM 96.9, AM 740 and 969TheGame.com/listen
Continue reading...
That’s it.
That’s the mantra.
That’s all the Orlando Magic have to do to turn a frustrating season into a forgivable one.
Correction: Just make the playoffs — and don’t get swept!
That’s all the Magic must do to turn a disappointing season into a digestible one.
Let’s be honest, shall we? This wasn’t how it was supposed to go and the expectations we were supposed to have.
The Magic were supposed to ascend. After an eye-opening 2023–24 campaign in which they unexpectedly finished as the No. 5 seed in the East and took the Cleveland Cavaliers to a dramatic seven-game series, this year was supposed to be the launch pad; the season Orlando planted its flag as a serious a contender. With youth and talent, depth and defense, chemistry and camaraderie, the Magic weren’t just a feel-good story anymore. They were for real.
Then the season started — and, well, it got complicated.
Now, months later, with the regular season ending, the script has flipped again. Somehow, some way, the Magic have fought their way back to relevance. They won eight of 10 to secure home-court advantage in the Play-In tournament. They’re as healthy as they can be without their starting point guard (Jalen Suggs) and their inspirational sixth man (Moe Wagner), both out for the season.
I give coach Jamahl Mosley credit. No, not like earlier in the season when I wrote that he should be the favorite for Coach of the Year when the Magic were fourth in the East and winning games despite their two stars — Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner — being out simultaneously for a combined 54 games with the same injury (torn oblique aka abdominal muscle).
While the season hasn’t gone according to plan, it hasn’t gone off the rails either. Banchero and Wagner are back and playing like the stars that they are as the Magic try to overcome the gut punch of losing Suggs, their tenacious defensive anchor and emotional leader, for the rest of season with a string of injuries.
The trio of Banchero, Wagner and Suggs, the planned nucleus of everything Orlando wants to be, played just six games and 97 minutes together this year. Without them all on the floor, chemistry stalled. Roles shifted. Momentum sputtered. And while the Magic have certainly fallen down the standings, at least they haven’t fallen apart.
Despite that they remain the worst 3-point shooting team in the league in an era when championships are won from beyond the arc, the Magic have continued to grind, defend, compete, believe … believe in themselves when most of us gave up on them several weeks ago.
Now, they have a chance to make us believers once again. They’re playing better; much better. They’ve gone from an absolutely awful 3-point-shooting team to a just a subpar 3-point shooting team. Their defense is still one of the best in the league, even without Suggs. Paolo is looking like the future All-NBA player he was predicted to be and the Franz is back to slicing up defenses with his unique blend of size, skill, and savvy.
“I’m extremely proud of this group,” Mosley says. “Just being able to endure through all the things — the injuries, the bump back, guys in, guys out … I’m proud of our guys for being as tough as they are and as resilient as they are and continuing to push through no matter the circumstance.”
I don’t know about you, but I’m actually looking forward to this Play-In tournament. Yes, maybe it’s a gimmick, but it’s pure drama — and opportunity — for a team like Orlando. At home, with the crowd roaring and playoff energy buzzing in the building, the Magic will take the court for a do-or-die, survive-and-advance battle. It will be NCAA-Tournament, edge-of-your-seat energy and tension.
Granted, the goal before the season was much more ambitious: Earn a high seed, win a playoff series, maybe even sneak into the East finals as a dark horse contender.
Now?
Not so much.
Now the goal is simple, but more urgent.
Just make the playoffs, where the Magic will hopefully play the defending champion Boston Celtics.
That’s not a punishment. That’s a privilege.
This is why we all love the postseason. This is why fans sit through the load-managed games of the regular season. This is why players push themselves through injury rehab. This is why coaches miss their kids’ Little League games and dance recitals and front offices try to stay patient when the outside world demands instant results.
Just for this — a shot at playoff basketball. Real playoff basketball. Heart-pounding, possession-by-possession, legacy-defining playoff basketball.
The pressure. The stakes. The unpredictability.
That’s what’s on the line starting this week.
And for Magic players, staff members and fans who have been through hell and back this season, this is all they can ask for.
A chance.
Maybe they bow out in the Play-In.
Maybe they shock Boston in seven.
Maybe they flame out.
Maybe they catch fire.
This is why they play the game and why we watch it.
A regular season filled with oblique injuries and even more oblique expectations and narratives is over. Now, the mission and the mantra is clear.
Just make the playoffs!
Because once you’re in, anything is possible.
Email me at [email protected]. Hit me up on X (formerly Twitter) @BianchiWrites and listen to my Open Mike radio show every weekday from 6 to 9:30 a.m. on FM 96.9, AM 740 and 969TheGame.com/listen
Continue reading...
