Orlando Magic vs. Detroit Pistons (Nov. 23, 2024): 3 Things to Watch, Odds, and Prediction

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OMD Prediction

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While the Orlando Magic were in the air traveling home from Los Angeles after a 2-1 West Coast road trip, the entire NBA world was buzzing over what Franz Wagner and the Magic did against the Los Angeles Lakers the night before. It was not just this space singing Wagner's praises as a potential and future All-Star.

The storyline remains how Wagner has elevated his game to that star level to keep the Magic in the playoff race. They are one of four teams in the Eastern Conference with a winning record and are now locked in a fight for the 3-seed with the New York Knicks, leading the Miami Heat by two games for homecourt advantage in a potential 4/5 series.

It is probably too early to talk about any of that. But the Magic have used this period to establish themselves. They are building their record and cushion to establish their place in the standings.

With how chaotic the Eastern Conference appears to be shaping up, the playoff-seeding battles might already be settling in.

Surprisingly, the Detroit Pistons are in that battle too. Under coach JB Bickerstaff, the Pistons have looked much more serious and competitive this year to sit in eighth place at this juncture. It is still a work in progress, but it is much better than where the Pistons were last year.

Do not expect Detroit to be a pushover.

But the Pistons must see if they can figure things out without Cade Cunningham. He is off to a blistering start—23.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 8.9 assists per game—befitting a top overall pick. But he will be OUT for Saturday's game with a sprain to a hip joint after he took a nasty fall late in Detroit's loss Thursday.

That will be a big piece for the Pistons to fill in against a Magic team brimming with confidence at home.

3 Things to Watch

3. Magic's defensive pressure

The Orlando Magic are certainly happy to get the win against the Los Angeles Lakers. But they surely spent the long flight back from the West Coast considering their defense and how it slipped a bit in the final two games after their streak of giving up fewer than 100 points ended.

The Orlando Magic's 120.4 defensive rating against the Los Angeles Lakers was their worst since the loss to the Indiana Pacers and the second-worst mark of the season. That only makes it more impressive Orlando's offense showed up to win.

The Magic will want to get back to basics on defense and play with the energy and intensity that was the hallmark of their six-game win streak.

That will start with forcing turnovers.

Orlando is fourth in the league forcing a 16.4 percent turnover rate. The Detroit Pistons are 23rd in the league with a 16.2 percent turnover rate.

That is at least a good sign that the Magic's strategy of forcing turnovers will have a key role in this game. Especially with the Pistons playing without Cade Cunningham (although he turns it over 4.6 times per game and is one of the chief culprits on that front).

Expect the Magic to employ a ton of defensive pressure on the guards to try to create turnovers.

2. Ivey's breakout

One of the sticking points in the Detroit Pistons' never-ending rebuild has been the stalled development of Jaden Ivey. Ivey has had an up-and-down career as coaches have not quite known how to use him and he has struggled to mesh with another non-shooter in teh backcout in Cade Cunningham.

Former Pistons coach Dwane Casey gave him room to make mistakes. But Monty Williams buried him on the bench or reduced his role. He still averaged 15.4 points per game but it was an uneven year for the young guard.

A third coach in three years in J.B. Bickerstaff has helped revive him a bit. He is looking like he potentially could be what everyone imagined he would be out of Purdue.

Ivey is averaging 18.0 points per game and 4.3 assists per game this year. He is shooting 43.5 percent from the floor and 35.9 percent from three. That is some progress even if he still looks a bit more like a rookie than a third-year player.

With Cunningham out, Ivey will have the ball in his hands more and will have more of the creation responsibility.

1. Rebounding Rebounding Rebounding

The Orlando Magic typically do not have to worry about rebounding. They rank second in the league with a 74.1 percent defensive rebound rate. Opponents score only 10.5 second-chance points per game in the league against them.

Still, on two of the Magic's three games during this road trip, rebounding was a big concern. Both the Phoenix Suns and LA Clippers trounced the Orlando Magic on the glass.

They made up for it with 15 second-chance points against the Los Angeles Lakers. But even there, the Lakers got two critical offensive rebounds late in the fourth quarter, including a putback from LeBron James that seemed to make it an impossible four-point deficit.

The joke around the league was that the Detroit Pistons have collected all the centers. They have virtually only Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart for major frontcourt depth now. But they do work.

Detroit ranks seventh with a 32.0 percent offensive rebound rate and sixth with 16.2 second-chance points per game. The Pistons can steal points on the offensive glass.

So even though this is a strength for Orlando. This is an area the team has to be wary of.