The Orlando Magic were riding high up 3-1 in their series. They were riding high up 24 points early in the third quarter as they could smell the second round.
All the doubts and questions they are sure to face in the offseason seemed further and further away. They could wash away a disappointing season by achieving the one goal they had been after since losing in seven games tot he Cleveland Cavaliers in 2024.
Narratives change quickly in the league. A loss that saw the Detroit Pistons hold the Orlando Magic to 19 points in the second half and 4-for-37 shooting in the half has the Magic asking themselves all the familiar questions.
Suddenly, the offseason is very real. And the Magic will have to face the reasons why they ended up the 8-seed. and how to make good on the talent and investment the team has made.
Those questions will come eventually. But the emphasis put on losing in a Game 7 after leading a series 3-1 has made all those questions even more urgent.
In one game, the whole narrative can change again.
A victory Sunday in Detroit, and all is forgiven. What happened in Game 6 stings but is forgotten because the team advanced.
A loss Sunday, and the Magic now have to ask why they are dealing with another playoff collapse and another year falling short of advancing.
There are a lot of questions to answer when the offseason begins. And that means there is a lot of pressure mounting in Game 7. This potential last game could determine a lot for this franchise.
It is never about one game. But how everyone views this season comes down to these 48 minutes.
And these five Magic figures will be feeling various degrees of heat depending on how Game 7 goes.
1. Jamahl Mosley
No person is probably feeling as toasty as Jamahl Mosley.
The entire season has been spent putting his coaching under a microscope. That would have been the case even if the team achieved some of its preseason expectations. The Orlando Magic needed to find out if he was the kind of coach who could elevate them to a title contender.
Falling well short of the team's stated lofty expectations only ramped up the heat on Mosley.
It is widely expected that the Magic will fire Mosley at the end of the season, and that might be no matter what.
At this point, Mosley's weaknesses are well documented. His offensive system relies too much on individual reads and decision-making and is not designed to get the ball to players in spots.
While players missed loads of shots in Game 6, Mosley's inability to draw up or get the Magic into something simple to relieve the pressure or increase the team's pace is an indictment of him.
So is the Magic losing an 18-point lead and a 24-point lead in elimination game losses in his tenure. That is now a pattern.
Mosley has done a lot to get the Magic to this level to be disappointed. He should be thanked on the way out the door. But Game 7 is a last chance to show what he has learned and raise his level.
Otherwise, this is likely his last game with Orlando.
2. Jalen Suggs
It is hard to imagine the Orlando Magic blithely giving up on Jalen Suggs. He has been the team's heart and soul for his five seasons with the team. No one would ride or die for the city more than him and brings the energy to this team.
Suggs is an important culture piece for this team.
But it is impossible to ignore how much he has struggled in this series. He is averaging 12.0 points per game and 4.2 assists per game. He is shooting 30.8 percent from the floor and 26.0 percent from three on 8.3 attempts per game.
Jalen Suggs' defense is not even standing out as the Magic have used him mostly as a roamer off of Ausar Thompson.
The experiment of using Suggs as a point guard has seen him grow as a passer. But his decisionmaking is still suspect. He still tries too hard for the home run play and does too much. And then he succumbs to ball pressure and struggles to initiate the offense quickly.
The Magic have known they needed a point guard for a long time. They bet on Suggs. And that bet is going bust.
Another rough game -- he was 1 for 10 from the floor for seven points with five turnovers in Game 6 -- and the Magic have to ask themselves questions about Suggs and his future.
The Magic have been waiting for an impactful Suggs game. Game 6 with the home energy was set up for it. He has been a huge letdown. And he needs a stronger close for the Magic to win in Game 7.
3. Paolo Banchero
Stars make their legacies in Game 7. And what we write about Paolo Banchero this offseason changes if he steps up with the season on the line.
That is the unfair responsibility of a star player like Banchero. It is the responsibility he should accept.
He stepped up in Game 5 with his 45-point game. He struggled in Game 6 with 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists but 4-for-20 shooting, including 1-for-11 in the second half.
To win a Game 7, you need your star.
The Orlando Magic would be silly to trade a 23-year-old with his talent. They should look to get him with a new coach and some new ideas on how to use him.
But regardless, this season has become an indictment of Banchero. It has put his career at a crossroads.
A loss after leading 3-1 may make the Magic entertain some of those trade calls -- the Milwaukee Bucks would probably consider Paolo Banchero as good a young prospect as they could get in a Giannis Antetokoumpo deal, and reports suggest the Magic were interested at the deadline.
Banchero has struggled to rehabilitate his image all season. A Game 7 can define how the world thinks about him.
4. Anthony Black
Anthony Black has been a smaller player on the stage for the Orlando Magic this postseason.
He had his breakout season, but the late-season abdominal injury has clearly slowed him down. He is not the same player he was during the regular season.
Black is averaging just 8.2 points per game and is shooting 38.1 percent from the floor and 38.9 percent from three. That is the same number of points he had last year in a smaller role against the Boston Celtics.
The good news is Black has found himself a bit with 19 points in Game 5 and eight points in Game 6. This series has not been a good representation for Black.
And it is not the last statement he likely wanted to make after his breakout season heading into a summer of contract negotiations.
It is not clear how much the Magic are willing to spend to retain Black this summer or how much Black is worth on the market or wants from an extension.
If he wants to cement that spot, he needs a good Game 7. The Magic likely need a good Game 7 from some role player to get the win anyway. And so Black has a lot riding on this game.
5. Jeff Weltman
Jeff Weltman is not playing in this game. But the degree to which the Orlando Magic need to make changes to the roster is likely determined by whether the team achieves this elusive goal of getting out of the first round.
This team's flaws have been on display all season and throughout this playoff series. The team's unreliable shooting may ultimately be its undoing. And there should be alarm bells ringing to address it urgently.
A new coach seems to be coming anyway. But with the Magic stuck above the tax line, Weltman's ability to make moves to this roster is very limited.
If Orlando improves, it will take him trading some core players and being shrewd with other moves that he has struggled to make successfully in his nine years in Orlando.
The Magic will likely use injury as an excuse. Franz Wagner's injury changed this series just as it changed the season. Weltman is not likely to panic this offseason and flip the entire roster. There is something to build with in Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Desmond Bane.
But it is clear the team lacked offensive talent. It is clear that some of his contract extensions have not panned out. It is clear that this team is missing what it needs to make its stars better and take that leap.
A loss suddenly ramps up the pressure for Weltman to make changes. A win lowers the heat on him to make drastic changes.
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