Orlando will try to keep its ultra-slim playoff hopes alive when it travels to Phoenix on Thursday night. The Magic have lost four of their last five games to essentially derail any hope at making the postseason. Phoenix is riding a three-game losing streak, but it is still clinging to fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
Orlando looked as if it might make a late dash at an Eastern Conference playoff spot this season when it got within eight games of the .500 mark in late December, but it has not been able to get over the hump. The Magic have not won consecutive games since the beginning of February and have lost four of their last five games coming into this matchup. They beat Miami in overtime on Saturday before losing to San Antonio on Tuesday as 7-point favorites. Orlando is four games back of tenth place and the final spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament.
bro really went bolhind the back @BolBol pic.twitter.com/gmGDYUgugS
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) March 15, 2023
CBS Sports gives the Magic less than 1% chance of making the playoffs, as there are two teams that are three-plus games ahead of them in the race to track down tenth-place Washington. Orlando also has an extremely challenging schedule down the stretch, with all but one of the games coming against teams that would currently be in the playoff field. The Magic rank No. 27 in the NBA in scoring (111.6), led by rookie Paolo Banchero’s 20.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. Franz Wagner is averaging 18.7 points, while Wendell Carter Jr. is adding 15.3 points and 8.8 rebounds. They are facing a Phoenix defense that is No. 4, allowing 111.4 points per game.
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