Orlando’s magic is against the impossible task of defeating one of the league’s best, and already looks miserable as the battle has begun.
Despite many injuries crisis across the group throughout the season, Orlando’s magic still worked hard and returned to competitive relevance.
Finishing the regular season as the seventh team in the Eastern Conference Ladder, they easily stamped tickets to the 2025 NBA playoffs by dismantling the Atlanta Hawks in a play-in tournament.
However, in their entry into the postseason stage, waiting for them was a major obstacle to conquering, attracting the second Boston Celtics for a second round matchup.
Despite how daunting magic can be, magic has sincerely embraced the challenge of fighting the reigning champions to start the playoffs. Even franchise star Paolo Banchelo has expressed excitement about facing off against Jason Tatum.
However, in their series opener, The Magic quickly endured a big slap as they were steamed by the Celtics, who suffered a brutal 103-86 loss inside the TD Garden.
Banchero stepped up as the team’s first option, finishing with a strong 36 points, 11 board performance. Meanwhile, Franz Wagner poured 23 points and five assists, earning the plot of former NBA big man Channing Fly.
However, the supporting cast behind them was completely absent. The other magic players didn’t score double digits as Jonathan Isaac was the only one who tallied a terrible seven points in Orlando’s third best scoring performance.
The collective magical attacks outside Banchelo and Wagner are not scary. Draymond Green called out Kentavia Caldwell Pope to inevitably boost his game to help the two magical stars.
“KCP needs to step up. He’s someone with championship experience. We need to see KCP step up,” the Golden State Warriors star said on the Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis.
“This was a magical matter. They need a little more. Who else is going to do that? They’re playing the Juggernaut, this might be a sweep.”
A much-offseason acquisition of Magic from last year, Caldwell Pope joined Orlando after two productive seasons with the Denver Nuggets, serving as an integral piece to the franchise’s 2023 NBA Championship victory.
There were high expectations when the veteran entered magic after signing a three-year contract worth $66 million. However, this season he is relatively disappointed, averaging 8.7 points 2024-25 with 43.9% shooting in 77 games.
Jalen Suggs has been missing indefinitely when he had a season-ending knee surgery last month, so magic needs a desperately reliable third option. And for Baron Davis, the rest of Orlando’s main players can grab that role in matching Boston for the rest of the series.
“Cole Anthony, (Anthony) Black These guys have to become that third party, one of these guys has to challenge,” Davis insisted.
You have to be sure that the magic didn’t accomplish that far just to fold against the Celtics right away. Ultimately, they have to do whatever it takes to make it a compelling series, and no matter how slim it is, they have to make the most of their chances of getting upset.
Game 2 will be set between both teams on April 23rd. It’s up to the magic to either continue the fight or make the Celtics ace an already seven-game duel easily.