On Wednesday night, the Orlando Magic returned to their home court to take on the Brooklyn Nets. The Magic, having faced setbacks with a two-game losing streak and Jalen Suggs nursing a thigh injury, eagerly welcomed Suggs back into the starting lineup for this pivotal matchup.
Following a reflective period spurred by Cole Anthony’s acknowledgment of becoming “too comfortable” in recent losses against the Knicks and Pacers, the Magic were determined to recalibrate their performance against the Nets. Unlike previous outings where third-quarter collapses plagued them, the Magic showcased resilience, maintaining a commanding lead throughout the game to secure a well-deserved 114-106 victory.
The atmosphere was electric, reminiscent of postseason fervor, as fans rallied behind standout plays such as Jonathan Isaac’s authoritative blocks and the Wagner brothers’ precision from beyond the arc. It was a night marked by a renewed sense of determination and cohesion for the Magic, signaling a promising trajectory as they navigate the challenges ahead.
Postgame coverage:
Jonathan Isaac
On the team’s performance tonight and coming away with the win…
“I think just following through on the message the entire day from coach [Jamahl Mosley] early on. Just our effort and our sense of urgency. We started with that in the Indiana game, but it definitely fell off and going into the third [quarter] in that game, we really didn’t come out ready to play. We made an urgent kind of mindset to have joy in this game. Play hard, play physical, and allow ourselves to get out early, and we did that.”
On his performance on the offensive end…
“I definitely feel more comfortable and I’m just out there playing basketball. Kind of allowing myself to be free and be myself out there. When the shot is there, I take it and if they want me to make a move, I do it. Just trying my best to affect the game.”
On playing in the backup Center role…
“You know, honestly not too comfortable. I’m learning that. I haven’t had many reps especially when it comes to play calls and stuff playing the five. Coach told me, I think last night, that I was going to get some run at the five. I’m just trying to go through my head. Trying to figure out where I need to be and stuff. It’s definitely a learning curve, but I’m going to get it. Playing behind this guy [Wendell Carter Jr.] at the five. Allow him to do his thing and come in and try to keep that same level of intensity.”
Wendell Carter Jr.
On his effective performance tonight…
“I feel like I just affected the game in ways that brings great energy for our team. Blocking shots, rebounding in traffic, [and] setting great screens. That’s kind of how my approach has been for this game and then going forward, just controlling what I can control and just doing the dirty work. It’s something that early on, coming into the league, that was my bread and butter. Just sticking with that.”
On what he saw from the team in the third quarter…
“I think we just did a really good job of controlling what we can control. I think in those other games we were getting caught up with the refs, which we did a little bit tonight, but I feel like we bounced back a lot quicker than those other games and we [were] a lot more physical than they were tonight. That was kind of what we were talking about after those last two games. It kind of gave us a playoff feel which is super physical and not a lot of fouls being called. Our approach coming into this game was that we’re going to be the more physical team and control what we can control. Not worry about stuff that we can’t control.”
CAM THOMAS:
(on what ways Orlando presented challenges to get over the hump and were able to get lead to single digits)
“Nothing really. They made some tough shots at the end of the clock. Jonathan Isaac making contested threes… shots we live with. Joe Ingles making a low catch and bounce off the top of the rim three. We got close…they just hit some tough shot, some lucky shots. But, you just have to live with shots like that. You can’t keep your head down and be defeated. Still an 11 or 10 point lead at that point game, so you just have to try to get the lead back down again.”
(on what he attributes recent disparity of streak of good wins vs. some real bad losses where energy wasn’t as high)
“Probably just the shot making. We had some open looks. We were like 7 for 26 from three. We took great looks, but it is kind of tough when you just can’t make them. Today I got blitzed a lot on every screen almost. I would just say shot making is just the key in that.”
(on rallying back into game and what it shows)
“For sure. It shows that we have some fight, but at the same time we have to stick to our game plan. Push the ball in transition…shoot a lot of threes, so I feel like we have to play our brand of basketball. Shots fell a little bit in that quarter and that was probably the main thing to it. That is what we did in the second quarter. We got it down to single digits. Then in the third quarter, we came out and got two turnovers, I had one, so that is where it was kind of tough and then they started hitting threes.”
(on his mindset and growth as a player)
“Just staying true to myself. Knowing what I am good at and what I am not good at. Know my limitations and knowing me as a basketball player. Knowing what I need to improve at…so just staying true to myself and not letting anybody change me, and obviously my favorite player being Kobe, I try to emulate that a lot just from the mentality aspect of it. Even now when teams are trying to blitz me from the screens, that can be frustrating because you want to come off and get one-on-ones, and open shots, but at the same time you have to read the game and just play through it. That is where I have gotten a lot better this year.”
