PHILADELPHIA -- The mood in the locker room after the Orlando Magic's shocking 113-108 loss to the Boston Celtics was just shock.
The team was trying to account for how they were unable to close the door after leading for most of the first half and nine at halftime. They were trying to get their heads around the nine 3-pointers the Celtics made in the third quarter. They were trying to figure out how Luka Garza hit the tough three with 31 seconds left that gave the Celtics the lead back after the Magic fought back to tie it.
They were likely trying to figure out why they were headed to Philadelphia instead of heading home for this matchup with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Sunday evening was a time to process and try to figure things out.
Monday and Tuesday were for moving on. The Magic had to put that disappointing loss behind them. The games count now as the postseason begins Wednesday on the road in Philadelphia.
"This is the opportunity right now," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Sunday's loss. "That's is all we can do. You can't control what happened in this game tonight. This one is done. And so you have to focus your time and attention and energy all on the Philadelphia 76ers right now."
The energy at the Magic's practice was still a bit apprehensive. A dark cloud still hangs over this team, with the rumor mill already spinning quickly and out of control.
The Magic need a win more than anything to get themselves right. And they now have to do it under intense postseason pressure.
But while the usual boisterousness of the group may not be fully recovered, the team is moving on and looking forward to the challenge inherent in a Play-In game and a postseason game against a solid 76ers team.
The focus now has to shift to the challenge ahead. There is no time to sulk or wallow. There is always another game. The only diference is now those games start to run out.
The challenge ahead
The challenge for the Orlando Magic is still very similar.
The team will need to be concerned with Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, and all the things the Philadelphia 76ers can do. But it is still so much about what the Orlando Magic do. It is still about the team being more consistent and dialed in defensively. It is about the team moving and sharing the ball, and absorbing and answering runs.
The postseason might be a new year or a reset. But the Magic cannot reset the things they have struggled with.
With the do-or-die nature of the Play-In especially -- the Charlotte Hornets await the loser and are already the heavy favorites to score an upset for the 8-seed -- the team needs to find the urgency it has lacked for too much of the season.
There is not a lot of time to think about the past. Only about what the team can do moving forward. Everything matters now.
"I'd say disappointed. But you've got to move on fast, and get ready to go to Philadelphia," Paolo Banchero said in the locker room after Sunday's game. "Just to come out with urgency, I think that's the biggest thing. We can't be relaxed. Season is on the line at this point. We're just making it harder and hard on ourselves. Hopefully we respond."
Despite all the struggles, the Magic have remained confident in what they can do.
It has not come together consistently enough to climb the standings in the regular season. But if the team is still searching and willing to work for it, it can still accomplish something this season.
The opportunity remains
The 7-seed is not what the Orlando Magic hoped to be fighting for this season. Their ambitions were far greater. The organization and team will have to do some soul-searching in the offseason and changes appear inevitable.
It is easy to get lost in that giant ocean ahead of them. But there is still an opportunity in front of this team. All they can control is the challenge and opportunity in front of them.
The Magic still feel they have enough to win these games. They still feel theyhave enough to make noise in a Playoff series even against the Boston Celtics.
The roof did not completely collapse in the loss to the Celtics. They still have something to play for.
"It's not like everything is bad," Franz Wagner said in the locker room after Sunday's loss. "We lost a game today that we should have won That's part of it too sometimes. Go in there with the right mindset and play Playoff basketball."
Wagner is right that not everything is bad.
They did some good things in their loss to the Celtics, they missed shots and lost connection on defense in the third quarter. They still had their chance to win it at the end.
Orlando still won seven of its last 10 and put together a late five-game win streak to climb the standings.
All the Magic lost was the home game for this 7/8 Play-In game.
If the postseason cannot wake this team up, then nothing will. The team is saying all the right things but the opportunity ahead of them.
The prize is still the same.
"I think we've just got to be ready," Paolo Banchero said after practice on Tuesday. "It showed us we can't expect to win a game and be relaxed and be lackadaisical. We have to be locked in every night. Now we are on the road in a tough environment in the play-in game. We've got to respond and play better.
"I think guys are excited, guys are pissed off, guys want to prove a point. I'm excited to see how we come out."
It will be a hostile environment and a playoff atmosphere when the Magic play on Wednesday. These are real playoff games. There is no margin of error left for this team -- even though a loss still leaves them with another chance to make the Playoffs as the 8-seed.
The Magic need the intensity and focus they have at times lacked throughout the season. Everyone knows what this team needs to do. It is just about doing it.
The disappointment from Sunday is gone. Now comes the question of what the Magic do with the opportunity ahead of them.
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