Wendell Carter said the Orlando Magic are talking about the big games that await them this week. They are aware of what the Playoffs are and what they are not, in some ways.
This is certainly not the type of opponent that the Magic have easily eliminated in recent weeks.
These are not the Toronto Raptors And Charlotte Frelonsin other words.
They are teams like the New Orleans PelicansThursday’s opponent coming to the Kia Center as part of the team’s eight home games. These are teams that are fighting for the Playoffs and need victories for something other than pride.
These are the games everyone lives for and the kind of games the Magic will need to win.
The soft part of the planning is finished. Yes, the Portland Trail Blazers and Charlotte Hornets remain on the schedule. But the Magic no longer have one of the easiest schedules in the league. They are going to face teams who are fighting as much as they are. And it will be a huge test for this team.
One they are clearly looking forward to as the Playoff race heats up.
“I feel like we’re going to have a playoff feel [Thursday]”, Wendell Carter said of his matchup against the Pelicans on Thursday. “They’re fifth in the West. This is the same place we are. It’s a good opportunity for us to see where we are, see what we need to work on and see what the No. 5 team in the West looks like. We’re excited, we’ve been talking about it all week and we’re looking forward to playing these West Coast teams. We’re excited to start against New Orleans. »
Orlando has taken care of business against sub-.500 teams all year.
The Orlando Magic are 26-6 against teams below .500 this year – three losses to the Atlanta Hawks, two to the Brooklyn Nets and one to the Memphis Grizzlies. Only the Boston Celtics can match this league-wide win total in these games.
The Magic have faced teams with losing records in 11 of 14 games since the All-Star Break. They are 11-3 in those games, with two losses coming during this pair of critical weekend matches against the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers.
These defeats left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth, given their physique and the Magic’s difficulties.
They are not the best representation of the Magic’s ability to play winning teams. But the Magic certainly still have a lot to prove against the best teams in the league.
Orlando is 15-22 against teams with records above .500, the seventh-most wins against such teams in the Eastern Conference. Yet, that’s something this group has yet to prove.
So the next four games against the New Orleans Pelicans (42-26), Sacramento Kings (40-28), Golden State Warriors (36-32) and LA Clippers (43-25) will be a good one litmus test for the team.
The Magic certainly see this as a check for them.
“I think it presents a great opportunity,” coach Jamahl Mosley said after Thursday’s penalty shootout. “An opportunity to see another team that is looking for a playoff spot and trying to fight their way there. But also a really good basketball team that plays a different style of basketball than the teams we let’s see in the East. What’s great about New Orleans is that they present a combination of both: speed, quickness, rhythm as well as physicality. This will be a great opportunity for our guys to feel and feel that which happens throughout the match.
With the Magic having secured a spot in the Play-In tournament, they are already thinking and preparing for the intensity of the Playoffs.
This is what seemed to surprise them in the losses against the Knicks and Pacers. The Knicks have played one of the best defenses in the league since the All-Star Break (third in the league). The Pacers had their best defensive game of the season in the victory against the Magic.
The Pelicans are second in the league in defensive rating since the break (106.7 points allowed per 100 possessions), the Kings are a surprising 12th (111.7 points per 100 possessions) and the Warriors are 13th (at 112.0 points per 100 possessions).
Orlando will face much tougher challenges, even though the team has the best defense in the league since the break. The Magic will find out exactly who they are. These will be physical matches with something closer to the intensity of the Playoffs.
More importantly, these games will prove their place in the Eastern Conference pecking order. The Magic are still looking for home-court advantage in the first round. And even though they hold a two-game lead over the fifth-ranked Indiana Pacers, that gap could close very quickly.
The Magic must continue to accumulate victories.
“I feel like we’ll always be the underdogs until we prove something,” Carter said after Thursday’s penalty shootout. “Going into this game, it’s a great opportunity to be able to do what we did against any other team against New Orleans. It’s a great opportunity. We’re all phenomenal players. We like games where we really have to feel like it’s going to be good for us and I feel like it’s going to be very energetic in the arena tonight.”
The Magic just didn’t have many chances last month to this kind of statement games. They haven’t had a chance to see how they stack up against playoff games.
There is this feeling of need for redemption. And how Orlando plays in the next four games will set the tone for the rest of the season and the playoffs to come. Orlando’s schedule still features some favorable stretches, even with five of the last seven games on the road.
Magic cuts turnovers 03.21.24. Orlando Magic need to cut down on turnovers heading into the playoffs. dark. Following
The Magic will prepare and prepare for the Playoffs. Even with these four straight home games, Orlando is eager to see where it stands against these quality opponents.
