The Orlando Magic envisioned themselves thinking about something quite different when they hit the final stretch of games.
Players talked all offseason about how every game would be important. They believed they would be fighting for homecourt advantage. They believed they would be using the final 20 games to round into form and play their best basketball for a bigger playoff run.
Perhaps that is the path the Magic would have been on if not for the injuries that have gutted the team. But even with Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner back for most of the past 20 games, the Magic have been unable to find the spark.
Injuries have truly gutted this team. They got one more dose of bad injury news to open the final quarter of their season when Jalen Suggs was officially ruled OUT for the remainder of the season after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.
There is a lot left on the table for the Magic that is well beyond their control. But they have also struggled to come together since getting both Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner back from their oblique injuries. Wagner has had his moments but Banchero has needed some time to get himself back up and running.
The Magic indeed are learning every game counts. Unfortunately for them, they are fighting for homecourt advantage in the Play-In Tournament rather than in the playoffs.
In the meantime, the Magic just finished a 1-6 homestand, dropping an opportunity to get themselves right.
Still, there is a lot on the line for the Magic as the season winds to its end. In the final quarter of their season (the last 20 games of the year), the Magic are battling for postseason and trying to get back to the playoffs. Those results may not change what the Magic must do this offseason, but it is still something to fight for.
And a way to gain some control back over the narrative of their season.
The Magic have a lot of questions to answer during the next several months. And how the team plays to close the season will have a lot to say about the direction the team can go.
5. Where will the Orlando Magic finish in the standings?
The number one question—and ultimately the only question that matters—is where will the Magic finish in the standings.
Entering Wednesday's games, the Orlando Magic are firmly stuck in the Play-In race. They are 1.5 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for seventh and tied with the Miami Heat, only ahead on percentage points and the division record tiebreaker.
This is a race that is going to go down to the wire—the Magic play the Hawks in two of their final four games this season, meaning for now the Magic still control their own destiny for the 7-seed.
This, of course, is not where the Magic want to be. They hoped they would be spending this time of year fighting for homecourt advantage in the first round not homecourt advantage for a potential Play-In Tournament game.
There is no changing that reality. The Magic cannot go back and be healthier or take back wins they wish they had pulled out. They can only look forward.
Orlando has the most difficult remaining schedule of the three teams fighting for the Southeast Division. The Magic already gave away their opportunity at home, going 1-6 on a seven-game homestand out of the All-Star break.
Yet, no team has been good enough to pull away. The Heat continue to lose games late. The Hawks are playing well, but have some difficult games ahead. Orlando is in a fight for its survival.
If the Magic are going to salvage anything from this season, it starts with securing a division title and earning the 7-seed.
4. Can Orlando Magic's veteran role players re-establish themselves?
Playing for a spot in the Play-In Tournament is probably only a small consolation for frustrated fans. The Orlando Magic will ultimately look back at this season with disappointment, even if injuries were a big part of the team taking this step back. Orlando is not where it wants to be.
But every game is an audition. Every game is a chance for players to make their mark. There are no games off.
It is not just that the Magic are trying to decide who they want to keep with the team moving forward, it is other teams are also deciding if any of these players are valuable to them in trades. The Magic's future is as much on the line based on what players on this roster do to end the season as much as anything else.
The frustration has been how uneven things have been from veteran players like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Wendell Carter especially. Even Goga Bitadze has struggled to find his rhythm since suffering a concussion about six weeks ago.
To be sure, the Magic will go as far as the supporting cast can push Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner to go. Since the All-Star break, only Cole Anthony is scoring in double figures at 12.1 points per game outside of Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.
There are signs the veterans are coming around or playing at a higher level.
Anthony has reestablished himself as a solid producer. He is even shooting 46.9 percent from three since the All-Star break. Anthony is not a consistent starter, but he has stepped in ably to give the Magic some offensive push on a team with few offensive options.
Carter has struggled all season, but he has found some form since the break too. Carter is averaging 9.6 points and 9.1 rebounds per game since the break. The shooting is not where it needs to be, but Carter is producing stats a bit more consistently and has looked more energetic.
Caldwell-Pope has had a career-worst shooting season. He is at 33.3 percent from three since the break which is better than the 31.1 percent he has been shooting this season.
A big part of the Magic's collapse this year has been the lack of production and career-worst seasons the Magic have had from these key veterans. And they are still the ticket to the team's success the rest of the season. The Magic's supporting cast has been frustratingly weak this season.
3. Can Paolo Banchero regain his form?
The good news at least is that Paolo Banchero has come out of his poor showing since returning from a torn right oblique. He has started to look like the superstar he appeared to be before his injury.
And that gives the Magic a chance. It was hard to win with their best player and highest-usage player struggling as much as he was.
From the time Banchero returned from injury through the end of the third quarter of the season, Banchero averaged 22.5 points per game and had shooting splits of 41.5/28.9/69.7. He added 4.7 assists per game against 3.3 turnovers per game.
Orlando gave Banchero the ball a lot and upped his usage to help him work his way back from the injury. The team lived with his mistakes. And it was rough with how poorly he was shooting—reviving criticisms of his game and his potential for stardom.
It was clear Banchero was working his way back from the injury.
Since the All-Star break, Banchero is averaging 28.1 points per game on 46.8/34.4/78.1 shooting splits with 6.4 rebounds per game and 4.2 assists per game against 2.7 turnovers per game. That looks more and more like a superstar.
And while Banchero still suffers from the same on/off numbers that have people pitting him against his teammate Franz Wagner (who is averaging 22.3 points per game since the break), Banchero has returned to a superstar form and track. Everyone knew he would get there.
The Magic's formula for winning right now is Banchero and Wagner playing at an elite level and both scoring nearly 25 points per game and then bringing another scorer with them.
Banchero has regained a lot of his form from before his injury. That is as much a relief as anything as he prepares to sign his max extension.
2. Will Anthony Black own his role?
Perhaps the biggest bet the Orlando Magic made this season was believing Anthony Black was ready to take on the backup point guard role in his second season.
Anthony Black got ample playing time in his rookie year, starting 33 games when Markelle Fultz was hurt earlier in the season. But Black was largely relegated to mop-up duty when the playoffs came around. He was still too raw to be trusted in a playoff situation.
The Magic have given Black a lot of opportunity this season. He is averaging 9.0 points per game and shooting 41.2 percent this season in a larger role, already at 62 games after playing 69 last year despite not starting very often.
Black has proven himself as a solid young defender. His size and instincts on defense are unquestioned. His offense remains very inconsistent.
Black will have games where he is aggressive and looking to attack the basket and finish at the rim or even hit step-back threes. The confidence seems there. And then it disappears and Black will play tentative and look scared to do much on offense.
The positive flashes have been encouraging and show why the Magic should still believe in him. The negative flashes are frustrating with how much every player on the team seems to be urging Black to be aggressive when he is on the floor. They know how good he can be.
The decision on Black is probably the biggest one the Magic have to make. Black might be the most valuable trade option the Magic have this offseason. But they also clearly did not want to give up on the project at the trade deadline.
Wendell Carter called his final 26 games the most important of his career. You could say the same about Black and how he closes the season. The Magic need him to finish strong.
1. Will Jett Howard retain his spot in the rotation?
That leads to the question about the Orlando Magic's other pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Jett Howard has struggled to find minutes throughout his career, spending almost all of his rookie year playing for the Osceola Magic in the G-League and struggling to crack the rotation.
Even with Gary Harris struggling to find his shot this year, the Magic have turned to the veteran guard for his defensive stability and the threat of his shooting. Howard has gotten spot opportunities and has shown improved defensive understanding and some playmaking potential, but he has struggled to put all the pieces together.
Howard needed a chance. And he got it for a little while.
Howard played 16 minutes in the loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers and scored two points on 1-for-3 shooting. He played 20 minutes against the Golden State Warriors, scoring six points on two big 3-pointers in the first half. And then played 14 minutes in the loss to the Toronto Raptors, scoring five points.
He was in the rotation for at least two of those games and then he struggled in the first half against the Raptors in the second game and lost his rotation spot. Howard has struggled to find consistent playing time.
The idea of Howard is that he is a shooter first. His playmaking potential and size were what brought him on the Magic's radar. But he is struggling with his primary skill.
Howard is shooting 30.2 percent from three this season. While Howard can probably rightly point to a lack of playing time to gain rhythm as to why his percentage is down, this was the skill that got him to the NBA. It simply has not translated.
The swing on Howard has seemingly been a miss for the Magic. And there may not be a whole lot of time to get it right this season. That opportunity for Howard may have already past.