Magic Starting 5: No Guards, No Problem for Orlando?
1. MAGIC EXPERIMENTING HEAVY WITH BIG LINEUPS
"The fact that we are in these games rather than last year when there were games that we weren't in down the stretch," Wendell Carter Jr. said. "This is a perfect opportunity for us as a group to learn, learn how to start winning games. Trial and error with certain lineups. Whatever the case may be. Eventually we will start pulling out these games that are close down the stretch."
2. POWER RANKINGS
"The Orlando Magic sits at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings with a 1-6 record through seven games, but that doesn't tell the full story.
"The Magic has been injured beyond belief in the backcourt and has only seen two home games across its first seven contests. Out of the six losses, four were by 10 points or less."
3. OBI SHOPPIN?
"The Knicks (3-3) recently exercised Toppin's fourth-year option, but Randle is in the first year of a four-year, $117 million extension bestowed after earning the Most Improved Player Award after the 2020-21 season. Thibodeau has been reluctant to play Toppin and Randle at the same time and it shows in the early going, even if Toppin has been one of the several consistent aspects off the bench, reaching double-figures on three occasions."
4. DWIGHT POWELL COMEBACK TIME?
"Powell has brought a spark to the Mavericks when on the floor, holding a +25 in the boxscores through three games played. Powell got the start on Saturday against the Oklahoma City Thunder while McGee was out for rest, and he finished with 13 points, five rebounds, and two steals on 3-5 shooting and a perfect 7-7 from the free-throw line."
5. NEXT MAGIC GAME
The Magic is back in action tonight against the Oklahoma City Thunder at 8:00 p.m. You can watch in-market on Bally Sports Florida or out-of-market on NBA League Pass.
You can follow Jeremy Brener on Twitter @JeremyBrener.
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