WATCH MAGIC-76ERS ON FUBO TV
FOLLOW LIVE: @OMAGICDAILY
Tickets: $10-$203+ on StubHub
Season Series: Magic 98, 76ers 86 in Orlando on Nov. 15; Magic 106, 76ers 102 in Philadelphia on Dec. 4; Tonight in Philadelphia; Jan. 12 in Orlando
Pace | Off. Rtg. | Def. Rtg. | eFG% | O.Reb.% | TO% | FTR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Orlando | 97.6 | 110.8 | 105.4 | 52.1 | 29.9 | 15.3 | 28.1 |
Philadelphia | 97.0 | 106.7 | 113.2 | 50.6 | 27.9 | 14.6 | 27.1 |
OMD Prediction
Our Record: 17-7/9-15 ATS
The Orlando Magic are probably looking forward to going home, even if it will be just for a few days before they ship back to Milwaukee for their NBA Cup game. Despite the loss to the New York Knicks, getting three wins on a five-game road trip should make it a success.
Yet, the Magic probably still feel like they have left something on the board. They were a bit rough in the second win over the Brooklyn Nets, dropped the ball against the New York Knicks and struggled to pull away in Wednesday's win over the Philadelphia 76ers. It has been a shaky end to the road trip—even if there has not been a ton of travel.
The last game of a long road trip is always difficult as everyone looks forward to the ride home. But on the Magic's three long road trips this season, they have arguably played their best game in these spots—the loss to the Indiana Pacers and the win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
A day off will probably resolve some issues from Wednesday's game.
The Magic should be aiming for a more focused and stronger defensive effort. The slow pace and low possession count probably made Wednesday's game look worse than it was—Orlando actually posted its eighth-best offensive rating of the season despite scoring only 106 points.
The Sixers got some good news and bad news in the meantime.
Paul George was not on the injury report after missing the back-to-back Wednesday and should be available to play. Joel Embiid is out and so is Adem Bona, leaving the Sixers very thin in the frontcourt. It should be another interesting challenge for a Magic team brimming with some confidence through the early part of the season.
3 Things to Watch
3. Get to the fourth
Orlando Magic games, especially against weaker competition, have followed a similar pattern of late.
The Magic usually play things pretty tight through the first three quarters, depending on their shooting. Their defense is good enough to keep them in the game. And then early in the fourth quarter, they go on a scoring binge and their defense wears teams down.
The Orlando Magic are the best fourth-quarter team in the league with a +16.5 net rating (4.3 points per 100 possessions clear of the second-place Cleveland Cavaliers). The Magic have a league-best 95.3 defensive rating in the fourth quarter, the only team with a defensive rating better than 100 points per 100 possessions.
It is no surprise then that the Magic are 6-2 in clutch situations—although it is surprising they have played so few games with clutch situations. But the Magic dominate fourth quarters—they did so again in Wednesday's game taking a 10-point lead before hanging on late for the win. If the Magic get to the final quarter in the game, everyone should feel confident a win is on the way.
2. The rebounding issue?
The Orlando Magic are technically one of the best defensive-rebounding teams in the league. They have a 73.5 percent defensive rebound rate, the third-best mark in the league. They give up the fewest second-chance points per game at 10.6 points per game.
That makes every offensive rebound they concede feel that much bigger. There are just so few of those mistakes. This is not the first time we have highlighted this apparent issue.
And they have been happening more lately. The Sixers recorded a 37.8 percent offensive rebound rate, the third-worst the Magic have conceded this season. The 23 second-chance points they gave up on Wednesday were the most this season.
The offensive rebounds and second-chance points seem to come in bad spots—think the offensive rebounds the New York Knicks corralled during their second quarter run.
Rebounding should remain a focus for the Magic. And it should remain a strength. But one that should be more carefully guarded.
1. Paul George in the fold
Tyrese Maxey has struggled without his two all-star mates running regularly with him. Maxey is averaging 24.9 points per game but a career-worst 47.5 percent effective field goal percentage. He scored 16 points in Wednesday's game, but shot 7 for 19 from the floor, missing all seven of his 3-point attempts.
That followed a difficult game Tuesday playing alongside Paul George where he scored 21 points on 5-for-16 shooting. He was 1 for 7 from three, although that three was a big one late in the game.
Tyrese Maxey along with rookie standout Jared McCain will benefit from the attention Paul George will take from defenses. Although George too has struggled this year.
George is averaging 15.9 points per game and shooting 40.7 percent from the floor (33.8 percent from three) in 10 games this season. His knee issues have slowed him down dramatically. He has not been the player the Philadelphia 76ers hoped they were signing.
But George is still a star-level threat. And he will require attention. His defense on Franz Wagner is a concern too. Wagner may not find it so easy to score 35 points this time around. But Orlando is uniquely situated to face this challenge—they have two guards with size and defensive chops to handle the Sixers' backcourt and an excellent defender in Wagner to handle George.