Paolo Banchero calls for a different type of Magic team

This Magic season has either hit a breaking point or just another bump in the road.

NBA seasons are long, grueling, and hard to bring consistency; now add the frustration after a blowout loss along with taking 3+ flights around Europe and back in a 10-day span.

The public faces of the Orlando Magic were not happy after a 27-point loss to the Charlotte Hornets, the second time these Hornets have snuck up on and stung the Magic this season.

Listen to Paolo Banchero after tonight's blowout loss.

Pretty damning stuff. pic.twitter.com/n9dShnT37h
— Alex Walker (@AlexWalkerTV) January 23, 2026

Paolo Banchero and Coach Mosley share thoughts on team direction going forward

Mosley stares — Jan 9, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley looks on against the Philadelphia 76ers in the third quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Head Coach Jamahl Mosley is looking for his team to find it pride on the defensive side of the floor again, something that's been a staple of the Magic Standard since his arrival.

Paolo Banchero agrees that the defense is slipping, but thinks the cracks in the foundation are deeper, saying something about the team and the offense needs to be different going forward.

Here's Paolo on the process of communicating with teammates and coaches to fix Orlando's issues at hand:

It is on everybody. It is on me. It is on everyone on the team, the coaches.

We have got to be on the same page.

It sucks that I am saying that in January but that is the reality.

I do not think we have been on the same page much this year. I just think it is showing up with the way we have played, showing up with the inconsistencies throughout the season and it's frustrating.

Guys in the locker room, we want to win.

But (as) I said, you cannot just say you want to win without doing anything to make it happen
Paolo Banchero

“We’ve got to be on the same page,” #Magic forward Paolo Banchero said. “It sucks that I’m saying that in January but that’s the reality. I don’t think we’ve been on the same page much this year. … It’s showing up with the way we’ve played … and it’s frustrating.”

More: pic.twitter.com/cfpM6q19b8
— Jason Beede (@therealBeede) January 23, 2026

Paolo compares this season's issues to seasons prior, saying that now that the defense isn't there to cover up the offensive woes, the team has issues on both ends to figure out together.

I think it is really similar to the past couple seasons if you really look at it.

I mean, last year was not a great season, we had tough times. A lot of bad losses last year.

The year before, we won 47 games, probably our best year.

I think it is something that has occurred over and over again the last few seasons; so, I think we just got to figure out a way to put an end to it.

And if we want to be a contender, or whatever you want to call it, a team that is going to play deep into the playoffs, we got to go out there and be different.

We can't just stay the same. Right now, it feels like, we have the same issues as the past, and now our defense is slipping, which makes it look worse.

Our defense covered a lot of that in the past, and now that's slipping, and so, those problems start to be magnified when you can't lean on your defense. I think that's something we got to figure out.
Paolo Banchero

No one has seen the best version of this Magic team yet

Banchero backs down Jamal and Jokic — Jan 15, 2023; Denver, Colorado, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) controls the ball under pressure from Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) and center Nikola Jokic (15) in the second quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Everyone in Orlando from the players to the coaches to the front office to the fans is understandably frustrated after a loss like this, no matter the reason for losing.

The reality of this team's current roster construction is that multiple key players have missed over half of the team's games so far to injuries.

Out of 43 possible games, Jalen Suggs has missed 20, Franz Wagner has missed 17, and Paolo Banchero has missed 10.

Magic fans know all too well how the trio only played five games together last season, too.

So in addition to not getting reps together last year, that's half of this season without your point guard super connector net rating cheat code face of the defensive culture in Jalen Suggs, whose presence alleviates everyone else's shot creation load and makes the game easier for everyone, plus over half the season without one of your two big wing franchise cornerstone all-star offensive engines.

Missing your two All-Defensive caliber perimeter players for half the season could probably hurt a team in the defensive standings, as Orlando's defense has dropped from Top-2 for two straight years to 15th on the season.

Having less impactful defensive depth behind them than before doesn't help either, while missing the general energy of Cole Anthony and Moritz Wagner may be another factor at play.

When a team relies on energy hustle plays to force turnovers to create fast breaks for a good portion of its scoring, the trickle effect of less defense ends up hurting the overall offense, and to Paolo's point, makes the halfcourt offensive stagnation much more glaring when shots aren't falling.

Beyond the injuries, there is a little bit of a chicken and egg situation going on – What is the best offensive playstyle to maximize this team's roster? What playstyle does Paolo want to run? Is Banchero saying he wants to slow down the ball more for himself to create, or does he want the coaches to implement a system that makes the game easy for the team while maximizing his strengths as a playmaking hub? Isn't the faster playstyle integrated this season different than before?

Looking at the season glass-half-empty, sure, this team has not lived up to its 'the offense and shooting woes will magically fix itself and we will be the top-3 seed overnight' level of expectations.

With a view at the glass half full, though, one could say that despite missing two of its four key players through half the season, this Magic team has overachieved its point differential to maintain a 6/7-playoff seed in the East, delivering multiple times in the clutch with a myriad of game-winning shots, staying within 4gb striking distance of the 2-seed, with most of the knock-on-wood injuries down to day-to-day status, as the team's most grueling travel plans this season are now in the past with a much lighter load in terms of traveling the rest of the way.

How the Magic might be following the Nuggets process to contending

Jokic dribbles past Paolo — Jan 15, 2023; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) dribbles the ball up court against Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) in the first quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

General NBA fans may remember a two-week stretch between March and April 2021 that essentially changed basketball; or, at least, showed us a glimpse into the future of what it might look like.

After the Denver Nuggets acquired Aaron Gordon from the Orlando Magic, the Nuggets went on an immediate 6-1 run, dominating opponents with their new core-four combining the unstoppable Jamal-Jokic duo with a versatile Gordon-Porter frontcourt; the foursome was immediately fearsome.

Then, as quick as started, it was over; Jamal Murray tore his ACL on April 12th, 2021.

That two-week stretch, though, was all the team needed to see to know the move was the right bet, they might just have to wait a little longer to see the payoff.

Two years later, the Denver Nuggets were NBA Champions.

Sometime, a little patience with good process pays off.

Is it possible the Magic have seen what they've needed to see to think the injuries are the only thing holding this team back from fully gelling?

Well, why wouldn't they?

When Orlando has all five of its starters available, it has the 6th-best starting lineup in the league by net rating with a staggering 18.0 Net Rating, just like Denver's fearsome foursome in their small sample.

A lineup with Suggs-Bane-Franz-Paolo-Wendell helps create open looks for everyone and practically solves all the playmaking, shot creation, shooting consistency problems in one solution, as long as guys make their shots, and these are the best shot-making-guys Orlando has to offer.

That starting unit leaves 3 sniper catch-and-shoot threats off the downhill forces of Franz and Paolo, leading to more off-ball looks for those knockdown shooters in Bane, Suggs, and Wendell.

With everyone healthy, the full 8-man rotation allows Anthony Black, Tristan da Silva, Noah Penda, Jase Richardson, Moritz Wagner to bring streaky scoring, versatile defense, and energy off the bench respectively, with the extra depth giving Coach Mosley options to counter the matchup rather than injuries forcing Coach Mosley's hand into either rolling with offensive-minded guards or limited rim-protecting bigs off a downsized bench after the Bane trade squeezed some depth.

The simplest solution to a Magic team already invested in this exciting young roster is simply regaining health at the same time to see if this full rotation simply just clicks together.

The ultimate question is what the best version of this Magic's offense looks like, but the only way to really know the answer is to have the best version of the Magic.