Franz Wagner had it rolling. He started slow but found his groove and his attack in the second quarter, bringing back that step-through move and aggressive downhill attack that this team so desperately missed. Wagner can squeeze himself into tight spaces and find room and angles to get his shot off.
It was a smashing return for Wagner, who scored 20 points on 9-for-19 shooting.
But his return did not bring the good tidings everyone hoped it would. It did not create the space the Orlando Magic needed to get their offense going. Instead, the vice seemed to get tighter. The team seemed to play tighter and have been unable to force their way out.
The offense continued to be stuck. Any brief moments quickly dissipated with turnovers and missed shots. Not even Wagner was immune, even if he had the best excuse for his mistakes.
This team lacks confidence in its ability to shoot or score. It is a team trying to force its way into space that is not there.
The Magic's offense has no quick fixes. Even their stars are not quite enough. And the team continues to sink.
The stark reality is the Magic shot 34.2 percent in Thursday's 101-79 loss to the Blazers. They made just six of 25 (24.0 percent) threes. They turned it over 22 times, not eclipsing their final turnover number until there was 5:40 left in the game. They finished with just 26 field goals. They missed 10 of their 31 free throws, leaving momentum- and confidence-building points at the foul line.
It was an abysmal offensive showing—the fewest points scored this year and the worst offensive rating of the season. How does this team climb its way out?
"We're struggling right now and we've got to understand we've got to stick together," Wagner said after Thursday's loss. "It's part of a long season. We go through ups and downs and it's going to take everyone staying together to get out of it. We have a bunch of games left. It's no reason to hang our heads. But we've got to get better."
Even two of the worst defenses in the league—the Toronto Raptors (27th, 117.1 defensive rating) and Portland Trail Blazers (26th, 117.0 defensive rating) made the Orlando Magic look hapless. They pressured ball-handlers and disrupted movement and actions. The Magic could not break free.
Facing the packed paint
Teams know this team is going to miss from the outside. The Orlando Magic are the worst 3-point shooting team in the league and posting the worst 3-point shooting season for the last 13 years.
Opponents know they can congest the paint. And that is not going to change until the Magic make enough shots to convince them otherwise.
The Magic aded to those problems with misses at the foul line and by going only 15 for 39 in the paint. The team was frustrated beyond belief and harassed into their worst habits.
This is not just about missing shots too. The Magic took only 25 3-point attempts, tying for their fewest of the season. The Magic were passing up good looks too, heading into traps and tight spaces.
Taking all that with the turnovers left the Magic searching for quality shot opportunities. And searching for confidence.
"I feel like there has been a trend recently of teams packing the paint," Tristan da Silva said after Thursday's game. "We've seen that. We're kind of used to it. We're just looking for the right play. Even if shots are not falling in games. We're still going to shoot them because it is the right shot. We still have confidence in every single one of us to shoot those shots."
The inability to generate any offense—even 13 points off 15 turnovers and 3-for-9 shooting for nine points on fast breaks—has led the defense to collapse.
The missing energy remains
The Orlando Magic defended well enough to win. The team posted a 105.2 defensive rating. But with an 84.0 offensive rating, that is not enough to succeed.
Nothing is working. Returning their stars only had minimal effects, even while giving grace for the players returning and working their way back from major injuries.
Paolo Banchero looked as frustrated and poor as he has all year.
He made only 1 of 14 shots, and for his eight points, the first time he was held to less than 10 points since the Game 4 win in the playoffs and since a Nov. 29, 2023, win over the Washington Wizards before that. Nine rebounds and six assists make the box score look a little better, but his five turnovers were the story.
Banchero was trying to force his way into the paint but found the ball knocked out of his hands or straight taken from him as he struggled to find his rhythm and his legs.
He was forcing passes cross-court but the Portland Trail Blazers were sitting in those passing lanes or teammates were passing up open looks and driving into the teeth of the defense. Banchero had five turnovers.
This was undoubtedly a low point in Banchero's return. Even with Wagner returning and playing with good energy, the team sank offensively.
Orlando knows too that its star players are still working their way back from injury. Mosley said the team has taken into account that there will be bumps in the road as players return from injury and lineups shift and change.
There has to be patience. But grace for those adjustments are not a mistake for playing with a lack of energy. They knew there would be a bump in the road, but this is turning into something else.
But the Magic are stuck in a deep rut with no simple way out.
"We're not going to completely stop shooting the ball," Cory Joseph said after Thursday's loss. "That doesn't make sense. It's a make-or-miss league. You got to take your open shots. And you've got to knock them down. There's only one way to go, you can't keep going down. We're going to go up eventually. . . In the meantime, we have to focus on the details within the details in order to mask that and still be able to pull out wins."
It is a reminder the Magic are not whole. They are still missing their sparkplugs in Jalen Suggs and Goga Bitadze.
It feels like the issues go deeper than simply making or emissing shots. Banchero and Wagner's return may not be the cure-all everyone thought. There might still be a ways to go to get the Magic back on track.
Answers remain elusive.