The Orlando Magic open their 2022-23 season on the road against the Detroit Pistons in a battle of two of the up-and-coming teams in the league.
Orlando Magic (0-0) at Detroit Pistons (0-0)
Time/TV: 7 p.m./Bally Sports Florida
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Line: Pistons by 3
Tickets: $15-$4,211 on StubHub
2022 Season Series: Pistons 110, Magic 103 in Detroit on Oct. 30; Pistons 97, Magic 92 in Detroit on Jan. 3; Magic 119, Pistons 103 in Orlando on Jan. 28; Pistons 134, Magic 120 in Orlando on March 17
2023 Season Series: Tonight in Detroit; Dec. 28 in Detroit; Feb. 23 in Orlando; April 2 in Orlando
| 2022 Season | Pace | Off. Rtg. | Def. Rtg. | eFG% | O.Reb.% | TO% | FTR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orlando | 99.7 | 103.9 | 112.1 | 50.3 | 24.9 | 14.4 | 22.3 |
| Detroit | 98.8 | 105.6 | 113.3 | 49.4 | 27.6 | 14.3 | 24.9 |
OMD Prediction
The Orlando Magic start the journey that will be their season with an interesting and intriguing matchup. Going up against a similarly young team in the Detroit Pistons is a great way for this group to test itself early against a peer and see exactly where they are at. Or it could just be the randomness of the first game.
As the teams enter the season, they probably could not be in two different places.
The Magic ended their preseason with two of their better overall performances winning home games against the Memphis Grizzlies and Cleveland Cavaliers to finish 4-1. The Pistons got blown out in the first half in a loss to the Grizzlies to close their preseason at 0-4.
That is just preseason though. Cade Cunningham is likely the best current player on the floor for either team. And that gives the PIstons every chance to win. But they still have to make their pieces fit together and get on the same page. For now, the Magic seem a bit more unified and on fire.
3 Keys To Watch
Rookie Debut
The reason the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons are likely playing on opening night is for the matchup between the last two top picks in the draft. Cade Cunningham entered the league last year as one of the best prospects to come through in some time. He nearly won Rookie of the Year with a strong showing to end the season.
Cunningham though started off very slow. He was hurt at the beginning of the season and missed the first four games. He debuted against the Magic and scored in double figures in only three of his first six games. Cunningham did get to 18 and 20 fairly quickly.
This is all to say that who knows how Paolo Banchero will react to his first regular-season NBA game. Do not be disappointed if he is kind of quiet in his first game or has his moments of struggle. But as Wendell Carter said that time will come.
3-Point Shooting
The Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons were two of the three worst offensive teams in the league last year. Their struggles are very well documented. And their three-point shooting was not helping. Orlando finished 28th in 3-point shooting at 33.1-percent. Detroit finished 29th in 3-point shooting at 32.6-percent.
In the preseason, neither team fared a whole lot better. Orlando shot 31.5-percent from beyond the arc (20th in the preseason) and Detroit shot 30.2-percent. Both teams hope for shooting improvement and have some young players who could get hot — the Magic know firsthand what Saddiq Bey can do. But both teams are not great 3-point shooting teams. Not yet at least.
The key to this game may quite simply be who can shoot the ball better. That is still a goal for both teams. And neither team is going to be afraid to let it fly. So this game may turn on 3-point shooting luck.
Turnovers and Pace
These being two young teams, the biggest key to their success is likely going to come down to mistakes and taking advantage of said mistakes. These teams are going to make their share of mistakes and their share of miscues. It is how they limit them and take advantage of the mistakes others make that could determine success.
The Magic ended up last year in pace. But even as that tailed up last year, their transition defense got worse. This was a point of emphasis and a struggle throughout the preseason. This is an easy way for a team like the Detroit Pistons to get easy 3-point shots. So the Magic have to be dialed in on defense to find success in this game.
The Pistons last year finished 26th in the league with just 10.5 fast-break points per game. They were not a breaking team. That may change some. But Detroit is not a great half-court team. Or at least they were not last year.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.