Coming into the Orlando Magic's series against the Boston Celtics, all eyes were on the battle between the star players.
This series is a test to see how Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner would measure up against Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, perhaps the star pairing they are compared to the most. It was a test to see how they measured up and whether they could copy the success that Boston's duo had. Or at least head in that direction.
The Magic are not the Celtics, obviously. They have different makeups and different supporting casts.
That was as much the story of Game 1 as anything else. The Magic held the pair of Tatum and Brown to 33 points on 14-for-36 (38.9 percent) shooting. The Magic's switching scheme did a good job isolating them and forcing them into tough shots. The duo was 9 for 21 inside the paint. Orlando contested everything they did.
Meanwhile, Banchero and Wagner combined for 59 points, shooting 24 for 51 (47.1 percent). The Magic's star duos won the individual battle. And the Magic did some work to make Tatum and Brown's lives hard.
The Magic probably cannot count on either Tatum or Brown struggling like this again. Even with Brown still recovering from a bruise in his knee and Tatum dealing with a wrist injury after a hard fall in Game 1 (he said he was fine and X-rays were negative after the game).
Of course, that only tells part of the story.
"I think we did a very good job on those guys," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Game 1. "We made it tough on them. Made it difficult for them to get easy shots. For the most part, it was the Derrick Whites of the world and Payton Pritchard coming off the bench for 19. Two guys you don't necessarily account for coming up with 49 points. We have to do a better job there. We have to know who we're guarding and how we're guarding them and understanding the personnel in those moments and what guys are capable of doing."
What could have been a decisive defensive win for the Magic because of this battle between the two pairs of stars instead turned into two days of questions ahead of Wednesday's Game 2. It laid bare why the Celtics are the 2-seed and fighting for a second championship, and the Magic are the 7-seed, scraping by to get to .500.
The Celtics still won the game 103-86. And those 49 points from Derrick White and Payton Pritchard were a big part of how the Celtics gained and maintained control in the first half and throughout the second half.
Where the Celtics did not have their best from the stars, they got help from everyone else. Where the Magic got the best from the stars, they got virtually nothing from anyone else.
The difference between the Magic and where the Magic want to be—competing with the Celtics on the biggest stages and for conference titles—is a player like White. White was the big difference in Game 1 and was a part of the test that the Magic could not answer.
"I think that's what makes us so dangerous, that we have a really well-balanced team," Jayson Tatum said after Game 1. "Guys step up, and it can be different guys on any night. Guys figure out their part to make sure we win."
Help in the win
Derrick White led the Boston Celtics with 30 points, making 7 of his 12 3-pointers. This is not such a rare occurrence this year. He had two games of 30 or more points this season, four games with seven or more 3-pointers and 20 games with five or more 3-pointers.
White was pretty high on the scouting report as a shooter, and he is an expert at working around switching schemes to shoot over screeners in that brief moment of indecision as teams execute their switches.
Many of White's threes came from the biggest thing the Magic fear in this series, being forced into rotation to help when a man gets beat by dribble penetration. White has been a gravity-creating option and the ultimate outlet for a Celtics team that lives off creating tension and spreading defenses thin.
"I think it comes from an understanding that everyone is a weapon and everyone has a chance to impact the game," Celtics coach Joe Mazulla said after Game 1. "Jaylen and Jayson lead in so many different ways, and one of the ways is empowering everyone around them. Their ability to impact the game offensively and defensively is huge. We need everyone to be aggressive and he does a great job finding the shots that are important for us."
This is a big piece that the Orlando Magic are missing. That constant threat to attack the basket and spot up from three. When Banchero and Wagner create so much attention, there is no surefire outlet from three.
White, in other words, is the exact kind of player the Magic are missing.
While Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner won their individual matchup with the Celtics' two All-Star players, nobody else on Orlando scored more than seven points (Jonathan Isaac) and took more than six shots (Wendell Carter). Orlando did not have the support for its stars.
That has been the case most of the year. Orlando is missing two of its four leading scorers with Jalen Suggs and Moe Wagner off the floor, but a lack of consistent scoring options, let alone the shooting issues that have plagued the team.
Orlando had only four players score in double digits this season—and, again, two of them are out for the season and this series. Boston had six players in double figures.
The Celtics found a way to thrive with their stars struggling. That is something the Magic have not been able to do.
"It means we've got many different ways we can win, a lot of different things we can throw at teams and a lot of faith and trust in every person who checks into the game," White said after Game 1. "We've got a lot of different weapons and a lot of people who do different things. Whatever the game calls for, we can make that adjustment."
Flexibility and versatility is one of the Celtics' biggest strengths. That is why they are the team they are. That is why they are the team the Magic are trying to be.
Orlando has been looking for a player like White for a long time. He is the kind of point guard they need—able to create as a secondary attacker and score without the ball as much as he can off the ball.
This series and the way the Celtics won Game 1 shows why the Magic need to find more players like White to supplement their offense.
He is the difference between these two teams.