Jett Howard flashes offense as Orlando Magic fall in overtime to New York Knicks

The Orlando Magic fell to the New York Knicks 82-80 in Summer League overtime fashion, keeping the Magic winless so far in their trip to Las Vegas. The loss is not that important as no Summer League result is truly important. But the story within the game had the story from players we should be interested in.

The Magic will still have some overall concerns about their young players that are natural from being put in unnatural settings during Summer League play. But overall both Jett Howard and Anthony Black have had strong showings that prove they should be able to hold their own in the league.

It is not clear if this will be their final game in Las Vegas. But if it was their last showing, it was a good one.

The Orlando Magic once again fell short on the scoreboard as they seek their first Summer League win. But the team has seen some very positive flashes from their two rookies.

Especially for Howard.

He finally had his breakthrough in this Summer League, finishing with 22 points including 19 in the first half on 4-for-8 shooting from three. He was a dominant figure that forced the Knicks to put much of their defensive attention on him. Howard found ways to attack it before the Knicks simply locked him out of the game.

He was able to display his shooting in different ways. Howard was able to get off his shot off the dribble and in catch-and-shoot situations.

The ability to create space off the dribble to go along with the ability to get to the rim is going to be an important piece to his game and what Orlando was looking for. The speed Howard gets off his shot will make it hard for opposing teams to guard and this was displayed against the Knicks.

For Black, it was a typical Summer League game.

Black was everywhere on defense and was able to get to his spots for the majority of the game. He continues to fight for rebounds which will bode well for when the time comes to join the complete team.

Black struggled a bit with the ball at times finishing the game with five turnovers, but should be a bit easier with NBA spacing. It also would have been interesting to see the Magic put the ball in Black’s hands to finish the game in regulation to be able to watch how he handled the situation before he made the big play to get the tip-in at the buzzer.

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These are the kind of heady plays that standout from Black. His game still has a long way to go, but he makes some key hustle plays and can stand out as a playmaker in this way.

Black ended the game with eight points, 14 rebounds and four assists. He shot 3 for 10 from the floor and missed both of his 3-pointers, so Black will have to continue to work on his shooting throughout the summer going into training camp.

Finally, D.J. Wilson made a lasting impression on both ends of the floor. Wilson did a good job protecting the paint and contesting shots blocking four shots. Wilson will need to continue to show his offensive game to get a shot with an NBA team.

And his rebounding still left a lot to be desired as the Knicks again pounded the Magic on the interior with their size. Wilson had just four total rebounds and the Knicks had 19 offensive rebounds for the game.

Wilson was in the game for his screen-setting and understanding of the NBA’s base offenses. His stability is important for the young players. But he is still struggling to make a lasting impression to make the NBA a permanent home.

The Orlando Magic will return to action against the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday. It will be interesting to see who does and does not play. It seems likely the Magic will spend their final two Summer League games making sure the rest of their roster gets some time on the court.