The Orlando Magic close out their back-to-back and brace for a long West Coast road trip as they face the Boston Celtics.
Orlando Magic (12-42) vs. Boston Celtics (29-25)
Time/TV: 6 p.m./Bally Sports Florida
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Line via WynnBet: Celtics by 9.5
Tickets: $22-$703 on StubHub
2022 Season Series: Celtics 92, Magic 79 in Orlando on Nov. 3; Celtics 116, Magic 111 in Boston on Jan. 2; Tonight in Orlando
| Pace | Off. Rtg. | Def. Rtg. | eFG% | O.Reb.% | TO% | FTR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston | 97.1 | 109.4 | 105.9 | 52.1 | 27.6 | 14.3 | 23.8 |
| Orlando | 99.1 | 104.1 | 112.1 | 50.1 | 25.6 | 14.6 | 22.7 |
OMD Prediction
Cole Anthony said it plainly after Saturday’s 135-115 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. They were punked and embarrassed as the Grizzlies waltzed their way to a win. For a Magic team that had been playing really well, Saturday was a disappointing setback, even if it was against one of the best teams in the league.
The rallying cry after the game was the comfort that another game awaits.
The Boston Celtics are in town and the Orlando Magic should feel like they owe them something. The Celtics put on a killer third quarter to frustrate a young Magic team in the first meeting and then erased a 14-point deficit in the final five minutes of the fourth to force overtime behind Jaylen Brown’s 50-point effort.
The Celtics are playing far better than they were at those points of the season. Although the team is still a bit inconsistent in the big picture. Boston is on a roll. The Magic will have to recement their principles to give themselves a chance against the dual stars of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
3 Keys To Watch
Offense vs. the best
The Orlando Magic’s offense is one of the worst in the league overall. But the team has been improving lately.
The Magic have a 104.1 offensive rating for the season but are scoring 106.9 points per 100 possessions in their last 15 games. That is still near the bottom of the league. The Magic will take what they can get.
But their biggest struggles have come against the best defensive teams in the league. That includes the Boston Celtics with the fourth-best defense in the league. The Magic posted offensive ratings of 89.4 in November and 100.9 in January.
Expanding that out to other top defenses. The Orlando Magic scored 91.3 points per 100 possessions against the Golden State Warriors, 95.8 points per 100 possessions against the Cleveland Cavaliers and 97.9 points per 100 possessions in the first meeting with the Dallas Mavericks (they posted 113.4 points per 100 possessions in the win over Dallas last week).
Orlando’s offense has found some space, but rarely against the best defenses they will face.
Best of the Celtics
The Boston Celtics have been a bit of a mess all year. The team that seemed to have the brightest of futures and fell just short of a surprising NBA Finals run in the Bubble in 2021 has been cast adrift for the last few years. And this season has not done them any favors.
Nobody questions the individual brilliance of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. But they have been unable to put all those pieces together or find the right chemistry and fit again. Boston’s play has been maddeningly frustrating.
But they are playing their best right now.
In the last 15 games, the Celtics are 11-4 and lead the league in net rating (+11.1 points per 100 possessions) and defensive rating (101.4 points per 100 possessions). That is the foundation of some really good basketball. Boston has been playing it lately.
In the paint
The Orlando Magic have been using a two-big lineup as much as they can this season, starting Wendell Carter alongside Mo Bamba and often keeping a big alignment even when one has to miss a game. It was only lately that Chuma Okeke or Gary Harris hit the starting lineup to shift Franz Wagner to the 4.
While there have been some positive moments from that duo — especially defensively with that starting group — everyone has long sensed that it was not working as well as everyone hoped. And Saturday’s game against an equally big lineup with Steven Adams and Jaren Jackson Jr. showed how deficient the Magic can be inside.
The Memphis Grizzlies outscored the Orlando Magic 68-34 in the paint and outrebounded the Magic 62-38, including 16 offensive rebounds. For the season, the Magic score 45.3 points in the paint per game (16th in the league) and give up 43.9 points in the paint per game (seventh in the league). Memphis is the best team in the league at scoring in the paint.
Protecting the paint has been one of the areas the Magic have been the best this year and is a clear focus of their defense. Saturday was a seeming anomaly. But Orlando has struggled to carry over their habits against elite teams. A sign of how much this young team still has to grow.