NBA Standings: Magic Loss vs. Kings Could Prove Costly

The Orlando Magic fell to fifth place in the Eastern Conference after losing to the Sacramento Kings.

Sacramento Kings v Orlando Magic | Rich Storry/GettyImages

ORLANDO - The Orlando Magic is falling in the standings after a 109-107 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night inside the Kia Center.

The Magic had won five games in a row prior to Saturday's loss, placing the team with the No. 4 seed and homecourt advantage for the first round of the playoffs. However, one game can change everything in an extremely tight playoff race, and that turned into the case for Saturday's outcome.

The East:

- Celtics win their 9th in a row
- Knicks move to the 4th seed

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Sacramento Kings v Orlando Magic | Rich Storry/GettyImages

The Magic now sits 0.5 game behind the New York Knicks and 1.5 games back of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who hold the No. 3 seed in the East.

The Magic should hope for a top-three seed in order to avoid a more difficult matchup for the first round. Placing in third would also ensure that the Magic would avoid the first-place Boston Celtics until the Eastern Conference Finals.

It's a tight race between the Knicks, Magic and Cavs ... and one team will end up starting a series on the road against the other. Orlando doesn't want to travel north to start the playoffs if it doesn't have to, but that means ensuring the team loses minimally in the final 11 games of the season.

The Magic returns to the floor on Wednesday night against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.