The Orlando Magic are 15-7 and third in the Eastern Conference. They have the highest point differential in the NBA Cup and are almost assured of advancing whether they win or lose their group finale – the Magic have to lose by less than 37 points or win the game to advance as the wild card.
Even since losing their best player to a torn oblique a month ago, the Magic have stayed afloat. More than staying afloat, the Magic have thrived. Franz Wagner has emerged as a true second star in a bid for his first All-Star berth.
The Magic have won 12 of their last 13 games with two separate six-game win streaks. It has been a stunning run from the Magic.
And yet. . . it feels hollow. It feels unproven.
The Magic have one of the best defensive teams in the league. They have a clear identity. They have no reason to think they cannot compete at the league’s highest levels. They have yet to do it. More than that, they have not had the chance to do so.
Tuesday’s game against the New York Knicks has been circled on the calendar for a long time. It is not only the finale for group play in the NBA Cup – the winner of the game wins East Group A. It is not only a game on national TV – restored after the league flexed off the game following Paolo Banchero’s injury.
It is a matchup between two top teams in the Eastern Conference. It would always carry major weight for the standings at the end of the season. It is a game that will be a statement of who is ready to challenge the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers at the top of the conference.
The Magic just do not have a lot of these wins under their belt. They have beaten only two teams this season with records .500 or better – the Phoenix Suns (without Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal) and the Los Angeles Lakers.
The win over the Lakers became a statement unto itself. It was a big win against a big-market team and the moment when Franz Wagner entered the national conversation for an All-Star berth with his game-winning shot.
But it was not just this year that the Magic lacked these kinds of wins. Even last year, Orlando went 19-28 against teams with winning records, the worst mark among all teams that made the Playoffs and only better than the Chicago Bulls among postseason teams.
It is not that Orlando did not win these games, but the team did not win them enough. If critics want to say the Magic get fat by beating up on bad teams, they may have a point. Not that those wins do not count.
But for a team with title ambitions or ambitions of winning a playoff series, games like Tuesday night’s road game are the kinds of games they have to win. They have to prove themselves more consistently on this stage.
Those opportunities have been few and far between so far this season. And so Tuesday is a big stage for the Magic to prove themselves once again or perhaps for the first time.
For one of these teams, Tuesday will be a big stepping stone and proof of what they can do. The stakes for the NBA Cup may be somewhat manufactured, but the morale boost and statement they make to the rest of the league could be big as these teams sort themselves in the Eastern Conference standings.
