Orlando Magic Daily
Fansided

5 Orlando Magic games that should get flexed onto national TV

By Philip Rossman-Reich

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 7: Aaron Gordon #00 of the Orlando Magic shoots the ball against the Boston Celtics on April 7, 2019 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 7: Aaron Gordon #00 of the Orlando Magic shoots the ball against the Boston Celtics on April 7, 2019 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 6
Next
Evan Fournier, Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics
BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 22: Evan Fournier #10 of the Orlando Magic handles the ball against the Boston Celtics on October 22, 2018 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Jan. 24 vs. Boston Celtics

The Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics have put together some solid and competitive games for the last few seasons. It was the Magic’s come-from-behind win over the Celtics in the penultimate game last season that got them into the playoffs.

On top of that, the Magic played two other games with the Celtics that went down to the wire.

The first game saw Jonathan Isaac emerge with one of his career-best performances, including an iconic and cold-blooded shot from the elbow. The second game was part of the Magic’s turnaround in January and saw the team cause discord in the Celtics’ locker room. Kyrie Irving not getting the final shot became a play repeated over and over as a sign of the team’s troubles.

Boston is a different team now, of course, having lost Al Horford and Kyrie Irving and bringing in notably Kemba Walker and Enes Kanter to replace them. They are still one of the better teams in the conference and still full of star power.

This game would feature a matchup of some of the best young wings in the league. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are largely considered ahead of Aaron Gordon and Jonathan Isaac, but the quartet of young forwards would certainly provide an intriguing matchup as all four start to take on larger roles.

More from Analysis

Currently, ESPN plans to air the Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves in this time slot. That certainly is a game full of star power with the Rockets’ duo of Russell Westbrook and James Harden going up against Karl-Anthony Towns. But this matchup would be a better preview of potential stars.

If the Celtics are competing at the top of the Eastern Conference, it likely means Walker and probably Tatum are in line to make the All-Star team. If the Magic are taking their next step, that likely means Nikola Vucevic and one of the Magic’s young players have taken a step up too.

That creates a more intriguing matchup that likely has major playoff implications going down at the Amway Center. The Timberwolves are a fine team, but few have them headed to the playoffs — since Andrew Wiggins has struggled to reach his learning curve.

Especially right before All-Star rosters are announced, this would seem like a better matchup to showcase players headed to Chicago in February.