There are 34 games left in the 2024-2025 regular season, and the Magic need to take advantage of the rest of the schedule to secure a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference before the start of the playoffs. Last season, the Magic finished the season in fifth place and entered the playoffs without homecourt advantage. That, alongside some other issues, hurt them. The home team won every game in the Magic’s seven-game series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
So, the Magic made it their goal to secure homecourt advantage this season. After a rough losing streak that dropped them to seventh place in the Eastern Conference, the Magic still have some work to do.
They have a tough road schedule coming up with games against the Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, and Denver Nuggets. Nevertheless, most of them are must-win games.
The Magic are currently the seventh-seeded team in the Eastern Conference, right behind the team they just lost to: the Miami Heat. This was the first game of the current road trip, and with that loss, the Magic are now a .500 basketball team. A couple of wins could turn them back into a top-four team in short order.
A successful road trip could make a real difference for the Magic
The Magic will need to start a winning streak on the road against some pretty decent teams while their stars Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner get more on-court chemistry. The chemistry between the two has to be flawless in order for them to start and maintain a winning streak.
This is the new Orlando Magic—The 2025 version that has a dynamic duo leading them. Nobody is taking nights off against this squad like they did before Banchero's arrival in Central Florida. With that being said, the Magic won't creep up on anyone and will have to force the issue when it comes to this anticipated winning streak. The Magic have earned respect from the rest of the league and can't sleep on up-and-coming teams like the Portland Trail Blazers and the Utah Jazz.
These two contests are surely winnable games for this squad, especially with a healthy Banchero and Wagner leading the way. And they will need to consistently play at their highest potential in order to start this winning streak. The Trail Blazers boast a young point guard in Scoot Henderson, who just scored 25 in a losing effort against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. And the Jazz won't be an easy out on the road either because they have a young point guard in Collin Sexton and stretch forward Lauri Markkanen.
Orlando has a great chance of maintaining a winning streak if the Magic can win those two games and somehow keep the momentum going by defeating the Golden State Warriors on February 3. The Warriors are currently a Play-In team rather than a playoff squad, as they sit in eleventh place in the Western Conference. The Warriors are a .500 team at home with 12 wins and 12 losses, so the Magic may have a really good shot at winning this one on the road.
The Magic's last two road matchups after they leave the Bay are against the Sacramento Kings and against the Denver Nuggets. The Kings are 13-12 at home this year and the Golden 1 Center has always been a difficult place for the Magic to pick up a W. It's always a tight game that comes down to the end, and the Kings have gotten the best of the Magic in their last two matchups.
And the Nuggets will probably be the hardest game of this road trip. The team is 14-8 at home this year and still has a center who is more skilled than just about any center who has ever played in the NBA. The Nuggets have lost their last two games but will be focused before the Magic enter Colorado. And a large part of that is because of the new respect that they have for Orlando. After all, the Magic went 2-0 against the Nuggets last season.
The Magic need to start a winning streak now if they want to somehow jockey back into a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference, and it will all come down to how they respond after three days of rest.