Controversial benching has Orlando Magic coach catching criticism for hard stance

Down the road over the next few months, a lot of Orlando Magic fans will remember Tuesday's loss in Washington D.C. as one that got away.

Since the Miami Heat have lurked near the top of the Southeast Division alongside the Magic all season and remain tied with an identical record entering this next game in Brooklyn, harping on a loss that could’ve been a win isn’t irrational. However, head coach Jamahl Mosley is well within his rights to have sent the message he conveyed to his starters by not allowing even one of them back in an eventual 120-112 loss to the Wizards they could be accused of throwing away.

If Orlando falls one game short of a division title, or the No. 4 seed to open the playoffs at home instead of on the road, pull up this column and remember the following - whatever transpires from here on out can be traced to Mosley’s decision to put the rest of the season ahead of the result of Game No. 37 of 82.

Does he deserve criticism that guys weren’t ready to play? Absolutely. Is he within his rights to ensure he delivered the message that a lack of effort is unacceptable by continuing to bench them in a winnable game when they were responsible for losing it? Every coach I’ve met would do the same. Those who want him fired should come to terms with the fact he must feel pretty secure if he’s willing to sacrifice a game. In this case, Mosley was 100 percent right.

It’s unconscionable for starters to come out as flat as Orlando’s first five did in D.C. The Magic had defeated Washington 11 straight times, but this particular group acted like it had done all the winning. They acted like former No. 2 pick Alex Sarr hasn’t improved, like CJ McCollum isn’t healthy again. They disrespected the Wizards and paid for it.

There’s rarely an excuse for any NBA team to trail a game by 26 points, but it’s even worse to be down to a last-place team missing their most talented player. Washington has been much sharper lately even with Keyonte George sidelined, so not approaching this road test against the Wizards with the proper attention to detail is concerning. Is it an indictment on Mosley? Have the Magic tuned out his message?

Magic's young reserves prove Mosley's message not being tuned out

While that’s a valid concern, that Orlando’s younger players trimmed an enormous deficit to four points in the fourth quarter is an indication he’s not being tuned out entirely. Rookies Noah Penda and Jase Richardson combined for 30 points. 22-year-old former lottery pick Jett Howard also hit double-digits. Were they tired come crunch time? Maybe. Was the experience good for them despite the loss? It remains to be seen, but I’d bank on that being the case.

Asked by The Athletic’s Josh Robbins, formerly the Magic’s beat writer for years, what his motivation for not going back to the starters with the game on the line, Mosley didn’t mince words.

“They’re the ones that got us back in the game, and that’s what they deserved; to be in the game because they’re the ones that battled that far back to get us to that point. And that group deserved to be on the floor,” Mosley said. “They played their tails off. They had the energy. They had spirit.”

Orlando’s starters lacked that fire. They were sloppy. Desmond Bane and Paolo Banchero combined to shoot a solid 10-for-18, but neither looked into it. Tristan da Silva hit three of four 3-pointers, but was also a team-worst minus-27 while on the floor.

Without Jalen Suggs & Franz Wagner, Magic are reliant on Anthony Black being special in order to help make up for the absent production. He was mediocre at both ends in D.C. Wizards pull off 120-112 upset. CJ McCollum was best guard on the floor, Alex Sarr the top big. No fluke.
— Tony Mejia (@MejiaDinero) January 7, 2026

Anthony Black was the Magic’s best player in December and was just a nominee for Eastern Conference Player of the week alongside Banchero. He’s due a poor night here and there as a young guy finding his way in this league, but it’s clear if he doesn’t supply the energy while Suggs is on the mend, Orlando struggles.

Banchero and Bane are veterans in this league at this point. They let the game come to them in a way Black doesn’t. As a catalyst, he wasn’t himself from the jump against Washington. Banchero let Bilal Coulibaly lock him up at the onset, failing to even take a shot in the opening minutes. Wendell Carter Jr. may as well have never even suited up. He was a corpse out there.

Thunder President Sam Presti just won a championship, but after a 25-1 start, his team is stuck in a rut that hit rock bottom through getting blown out at home by the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday. A great nugget related to the day-to-day grind and a “sky is falling mentality”that he shared a few years ago is available to view in the video below. It makes a lot of sense.

Sam Presti on April 20th, 2023:

“The sky falls on every NBA team at least two times a year… You may play horrible for weeks, it may be a month. You don’t want to have several months… The teams that have a sophisticated competitiveness to them understand that while you’re… pic.twitter.com/0hWvl6DpW2
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) January 6, 2026

The Orlando Magic aren’t alone in trying to bounce back from a bad loss. Currently, the Heat are questioning a future stuck with Bam Adebayo as their captain since he’s seemingly lost his offensive mojo. The 76ers just lost to a Nuggets team missing all of their starters. The Knicks are slumping since winning the NBA Cup. They don’t call the NBA regular season a marathon because players do a lot of running.

If the Magic are in a position to do anything in this 2025-26 postseason, we’ll remember the Wizards loss as a turning point where Mosley cemented his point that a lackluster effort won’t be rewarded with playing time. The Orlando on the front of the jersey must always matter more than the name on the back.

Magic's young reserves prove Mosley's message not being tuned out

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