It is hard to distill a 48-minute game down to one moment.
There are so many things that happen during a game, it is never just one thing that leads to a win or loss even if it feels like it in the end.
But the narrative pull of a big moment is always strong. The narrative pull of a singular moment is hard to ignore. A game might not be defined by a single moment, but a single moment can help make sense of a game. It can help set the story we tell about a game and what carries on.
People obsess over the last shot – who takes it, who makes it and who misses it – because it says something about the responsibility a player is carrying. It speaks to where the team puts the trust of winning and losing.
With the Los Angeles Lakers missing four free throws in the final 40 seconds of the game, they left the door open for the Orlando Magic to steal a road win. At seemingly every turn, Wagner was the one to push the team through the door.
Down by two on the team’s final possession, Wagner worked to get a switch onto Cam Reddish at the top of the key. He rocked his defender to sleep, but finding no way to get to the basket, he pulled up from far behind the 3-point for a three. It went in with two seconds left, delivering the Magic a 119-118 victory, stunning the crowd at Crypto.com Arena.
Franz Wagner has had game-winning shots before. But it never felt like this. It never felt this audacious and this bold. It never felt like it came on this stage or with this mastery.
It never felt like this.
It never felt like Wagner was in complete control. The Magic have pushed Wagner to transform himself into a star to help replace Paolo Banchero’s production. Coach Jamahl Mosley said Wagner has had to learn to be uncomfortable.
This kind of shot-making is not something Wagner was known for through his first three years. But he has come a long way.
“Obviously, the situation is a special one for everyone on the team with guys being out,” Wagner said after Thursday’s game. “Obviously, I try to do my best to step into that new role and take on the challenge. I think I have come a long way since I came into the league.”
Wagner finished the game with 37 points and a career-high 11 assists. He scored 15 points in the fourth quarter and 13 of the Magic’s 21 points. Wagner had his fingerprints all over this game.
That he had that big game including the game-winner in a game where Anthony Davis and LeBron James were also putting up starring performances (with 30-plus point games each) shows how far Wagner has come.
He was a star on their level in this game. And he ultimately delivered the biggest shot.
“He got to the point where I didn’t want to cut and mess up his spacing, so I just stared at him and said, ‘You got to hit it,’” Jalen Suggs said after Thursday’s game. “He got to his bag, hit a stepback, shot the rainbow, then it went in. Yeah, he’s special. That was like a movie moment.”
As far as narratives go, the Magic got a pretty good story to tell with their young budding star. Wagner made a pretty loud statement of his arrival to a new class of player.
