This Wednesday, the (11-21) Orlando Magic will travel to Houston, TX to take on the (9-21) Houston Rockets. Tipoff will be at 8:00 PM EST inside the Toyota Center. These two teams played earlier in the season, as the Rockets walked away with a 134-127 victory.
The Magic are coming into this one after falling to the Atlanta Hawks, 126-125. They battled throughout that entire game but came up just short at the end. Orlando will have to stay efficient on both ends of the floor if they want to challenge the Rockets in this one.
The Houston Rockets are entering this matchup after losing to the San Antonio Spurs, 124-105. They didn't show up for that game, as they were dominated on both ends of the court. They will have to show up in this one if they want to give the Magic a run for their money at home.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The Orlando Magic are currently in 13th place in the Eastern Conference standings, as they trail the first-place Milwaukee Bucks by 12 games. On offense, they are scoring 109.4 points per game and they are shooting 46.7% from the floor. This is the 28th most points scored per contest and the 17th-highest team shooting percentage. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Magic have an adjusted offensive rating of 111.1, which is the 24th-highest rating in the NBA. Paolo Banchero continues to lead the way on the offensive end of the floor, as he is scoring 21.8 points per game on 44.8% shooting from the field. Orlando has also struggled to consistently knock down shots from behind the arc. They are shooting 34.4% from deep, which is the 21st-highest three-point shooting percentage. They have been much more successful when they attack the basket and score inside the paint. Luckily, the Magic have taken care of business at the charity stripe. They have made 80.9% of their shots at the line, which is the sixth-highest free-throw shooting percentage in the NBA. They can't miss these free shots and still expect to stay competitive in these games.
On the defensive end of the court, they are giving up 113.3 points per contest and they have allowed their opponents to shoot 47% from the floor. This is the 15th least amount of points surrendered per game and the 17th lowest shooting percentage allowed. According to dunkandthrees.com, the Magic have an adjusted defensive rating of 114.1. This is the 23rd-lowest defensive rating, as they have struggled to defend inside the paint. The Magic have shown that they can defend on the perimeter, though. They are forcing their opponents to shoot 33.2% from behind the arc, which is the second-lowest three-point shooting percentage allowed in the NBA. Orlando is also snatching 43.5 rebounds per game, as this is the 14th most in the league. They have to crash the defens ive glass if they want to keep the Rockets from scoring second-chance points.
Injury Report: Franz Wagner C (Ankle) is questionable. Jalen Suggs PG (Ankle), Gary Harris SG (Hamstring), Chuka Okeke PF (Knee), and Wendell Carter Jr. C (Foot) are out.
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