Everyone likes to compare the Orlando Magic and the Houston Rockets.
They are both young teams that made their Playoff breakthrough in the same season. They both had top picks in the 2022 NBA Draft, the Magic surprising the league by taking Paolo Banchero when all signs indicated they would take Jabari Smith Jr.
They are both now eyeing competing seriously after their first forays into the Playoffs -- the Rockets earning the 2-seed last year while the Magic struggled with injuries to the 8-seed.
That might be where the paths diverge.
The Rockets have a champion in Kevin Durant, who knows what it takes to win. Ime Udoka has coached his team to the NBA Finals. They have experience and the weight of expectations behind them.
The way they play, they feel more assertive and sure of their identity. If the door is left open, they will come barging through.
Orlando took advantage of many of its opportunities Sunday, but this is a young team that still leaves the door open far too often. The Magic have a lot to regret in a 117-113 overtime loss to the Rockets on Sunday.
They indeed left the game at the foul line and missed the details that a championship team is supposed to get.
"I think that game came down to the details," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Sunday's loss. "The game was in the margins. You miss nine free throws. A couple of missed defensive assignments down the stretch that allowed them to get a couple of easy baskets. Then the rebounding. We know the tam that is. They had a lot of extra possessions. In a game like this, you've got to make sure you secure those rebounds down the stretch."
Several preventable miscues gave the Rockets opportunities to erase the hard work of leading for nearly the entire game. And while the Magic were game to compete, they could not take advantage of their opportunities. The Rockets did.
With the last possession, Desmond Bane went too early and had a layup attempt blocked by Alperen Sengun. The ball deflected off his hand and out of bounds, giving the Rockets the seeming last possession to win the game.
Orlando nearly pulled the game out of nowhere then as Alperen Sengun missed Amen Thompson underneath the basket and had to quickly get it to Kevin Durant. Kevin Durant tripped, enabling Anthony Black to steal the ball and get and and-1 dunk for a two-point lead with five seconds left.
But Black missed his free throw, one of nine free throw misses for the team. The Rockets called timeout on the miss and set up the game-tying basket -- a nifty set up that established Alperen Sengun with deep post position to hit a hook shot over Jonathan Isaac.
The end of games are all about execution and avoiding these kinds of mistakes that give other teams the chance to win. The Magic have missed on these details far too often.
Lost at the line
As much as Anthony Black's free throw stings, it is not the first time the Orlando Magic missed critical free throws with the game on the line.
Paolo Banchero missed three free throws in the final minutes in the win over the Portland Trail Blazers last week. Franz Wagner, who missed three free throws in Sunday's loss, missed a pair of free throws at the end of Friday's win over the Brooklyn Nets.
In both of those instances, the Magic were able to rally and make shots and stops to score the wins.
The Rockets made them pay for not putting the game away, tightening up their defense in the fourth quarter and making shot after shot.
The Magic's offense simply ran out of gas, scoring 33 points on 10-for-30 shooting in the fourth quarter and overtime, posting a 94.3 offensive rating while the Rockets finally broke through to score 121.2 points per 100 possessions.
Franz Wagner finished with an impressive 29 points, boosted by going 10 for 13 from the foul line. But he was just 3 for 10 inside the paint outside of the restricted area. He missed all four of his shots in that area in the fourth quarter and overtime.
Any one could have been the difference in the game.
Finding the attack
The Orlando Magic's offense is still much improved. It is not the same anemic group it was last year. The Magic are scoring points far more efficiently.
But nobody confuses this offense for one of the best in the league -- like the Houston Rockets' offense. Many of Orlando's games are hoping the team can generate open shots and make them and then survive the periods where the team inevitably stalls.
Sunday, it was the starters that stalled for much of the fourth quarter, furthering the pressure to minimize other mistakes.
Orlando struggled to get into the paint throughout the fourth quarter, taking only 15 shots in the paint, including the restricted area, in the fourth quarter and overtime. The Rockets took 24.
Even if the Magic were solid at preventing second-chance --eight second-chance points on 19 offensive rebounds -- their margin for error is simply much smaller with their unreliable shooting and struggles to score on the interior.
Especially without Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs, the Magic's offense is missing key pieces and can go quiet for long stretches. It stalled throughout the second half. The Magic must continue to find a way to supplement their team.
Sunday's game simply came down to creating offense and making shots consistently down the stretch. Orlando could not do that on this night. Missing those controllable shots.
That only highlights the mistakes and details the Magic got wrong. It was a game where any one thing could have tipped the scales in their favor. And the poor movement and interior shooting derailed a night where the energy and intensity went so right.
Steps in the right direction
The Orlando Magic are taking steps in the right direction. Even playing without Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs, Orlando showed grit and determination that the team was missing earlier in the season.
But that is not the end goal. And the team knows it.
"Our competitiveness, our fight, our desire to win. If we have that, we'll have a good rest of the season," Desmond Bane said after Sunday's loss. "Something that needs to become our standard and will give us a chance to be competitive night in and night out."
The team wants to be a title contender. And these are the games and opponents the Magic need to beat to get there.
Orlando did a lot of things right. But the team's games are coming down to details it can control -- free throws and turnovers especially. Until the Magic get those right, the chance for frustrating losses will continue to exist.