Atlanta Overcomes Big Performances From Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero to Get A Big Win in Orlando

Atlanta is now 3-0 since the trade deadline and moves to 26-28 this season after their win over the Magic

Feb 10, 2025; Orlando, Florida, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) drives to the hoop past Orlando Magic forward Tristan da Silva (23) in the second quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Three's a streak.

Atlanta got one of their better all-around team victories tonight down in Orlando, defeating the Magic 112-106 to win their third straight game and move to 3-0 since the trade deadline. Not only that, but the Hawks won their first matchup of the year vs Orlando and (for now) moved a half-game ahead of them for the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference. Despite all of the talk about what Atlanta did at the trade deadline, they are not that far from being in the top six in the East.

It was not easy though. The Hawks were going against one of the best defenses in the NBA and one of the toughest matchups for Trae Young. The offense for Atlanta was not great tonight, but they got contributions from several players. Young (19 points) had his worst game in quite some time, shooting 6-17 and 1-8 from three, but he got help from Caris LeVert (18 and eight rebounds off the bench), Terance Mann (12 points), and Dyson Daniels (10 points). Atlanta shot 49% from the field and 38% from three.

Before the trade deadline, the Hawks bench was struggling in a big way, but the new additions of LeVert, Mann, and Niang have made a difference. Atlanta got 54 points from their bench tonight and if they can continue to perform like this, don't write the Hawks off just yet.

Not only was the Magic's defense tough tonight, but the Hawks had to survive two monster performances from Franz Wagner (37 points and seven rebounds) and Paolo Banchero (31 points, six rebounds, and four assists). While the rest of the Orlando team struggled to score (no other Magic player had more than nine points), Wagner and Banchero were fantastic. Orlando shot 47% from the field and 40% from three tonight.

Up next, the Hawks have one final game before the All-Star break and it is at Madison Square Garden vs the Knicks. A win would give Atlanta a ton of momentum heading into the All-Star break. The Hawks are right in the thick of a crowded Eastern Conference race and every win counts, especially gritty wins like tonight.

The Hawks made another change in the starting lineup tonight. Quin Snyder elected to put Mouhamed Gueye back into the starting lineup tonight. In his last game played on Friday night vs Milwaukee, Gueye had 15 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocks. He started alongside Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, and Onyeka Okongwu. Orlando's first five on the floor were Cole Anthony. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, and Goga Bitadze.

Gueye picked up right where he left off on Friday. He scored the first seven points of the game for the Hawks, including a pair of threes. He was the only Hawk scoring in the early going and the Magic led 11-9 with 6:50 left in the quarter.

After the timeout, Atlanta kept Daniels in, but brought in Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, Larry Nance Jr, and Vit Krejci in. The Hawks proceeded to take a 20-17 lead thanks to some good defense and three-point shooting. The only real problem for the Hawks in the first quarter was turnovers. Atlanta had four turnovers, which turned into eight points for the Magic on the other end. Atlanta led 25-22 heading into the second quarter, shooting 50% fro the field and 33% from three against the elite Orlando defense. Gueye led the Hawks with seven points and Wagner had nine for Orlando. Atlanta held Orlando to 37% from the field and 29% from three.

The Hawks began the second quarter dominating the glass and that gave them an advantage, not to mention Orlando was struggling with turnovers themselves. Atlanta got out to a 39-33 lead, outrebounding the Magic 7-3 and taking advantage of the extra possessions.

The Magic's defense was holding Young in check and the Magic got things together on offense. Theuy used a 9-0 run to take a 46-44 lead over the Hawks. From there, Orlando outscored the Hawks 13-6 over the final four minutes and led 57-50 at the half. The Hawks defense, which had been so good early in the game, allowed Orlando to shoot 12-15 from the field and 4-5 from three in the quarter.

Young had been playing some of his best basketball of the year coming into this game (was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week today), but had more turnovers (5) than points (4) in the first half tonight. No Hawks player was in double-digits.

Orlando bounced back from a poor first quarter on offense and was shooting the ball well overall in the first half, going 56% from the field and 50% from three. Wagner of course led the way with 20 points on 8-12 shooting.

Young made it a point to get to the basket early and scored the first four points of the quarter for the Hawks and cut the lead to three. The Magic were having a hard time taking care of the ball, ending up with six turnovers in the quarter. The Hawks held the Magic to 25 points in the third quarter, but there was just one problem. Banchero had 20 of those 25 points, including all four of the Magic's three-point makes. He was the only source of life for the Magic and because of his shotmaking ability, the Hawks only led by one going into the third quarter 83-82.

After Banchero lit the Hawks up in the third quarter, it was back to Wagner to start the fourth. He scored eight of the Magic's first 14 points of the quarter, but that was not the most worrisome thing for the Hawks. Both Larry Nance Jr and Vit Krejci had to be taken back to the locker room after getting injured, with Krejci's injury coming after a flagrant foul from Jonathan Isaac and Nance having to be helped to the locker room by his teammates. For a Hawks team already short key players, this was not what they needed.

It was the two newest Hawks making the biggest impact early in the 4th. Terance Mann hit two big threes and LeVert had five points. They scored 11 of the first 14 points for the Hawks.

The rest of the fourth quarter was a grind for the Hawks, but they found a way to get the win and Young led them there. He had a really rough game through three quarters, but scored 11 in the fourth quarter and ended up leading the Hawks in scoring. Wagner scored 13 in the fourth, but he could not get everyone else around him to help. Atlanta won 112-106 and earned their third straight win, all of them coming since the trade deadline. For now, they pass the Magic for the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference. Atlanta is now also 1-0 vs Orlando this season, an important season series.

Related Links

Atlanta Hawks Trae Young Named Eastern Conference Player of the Week

NBA Rookie Of The Year Race: Zaccharie Risacher Is Starting to Make His Case And The Timing Could Not Be Better