This Magic guard is not happy with team’s current defense

It's been 33 days -- or 14 games -- since the Orlando Magic have won consecutive games.

That's a streak far too long for a team with deep postseason aspirations.

Unfortunately for Orlando, it has been forced to navigate myriad injuries to its best players. But a big reason for treading water over the last month has been their recent slide defensively.

That ugly trend continued in their 121-114 loss to the Chicago Bulls, who scored 122.2 points per 100 possessions despite missing their top two scorers in Josh Giddey and Coby White.

"We just didn't get any stops," Magic guard Anthony Black said after the game, according to the Orlando Sentinel's Jason Beede. "And they got (out) in transition, they got threes up. They got whatever they wanted. ... Yeah, (we are) just not playing good defense at all recently."

#Magic guard Anthony Black told reporters at Chicago that the Bulls “got whatever they wanted,” against Orlando the last three quarters.

“We just didn’t get any stops,” Black said. “Just not playing good defense at all recently.”

More: pic.twitter.com/mAFAdAnWhY
— Jason Beede (@therealBeede) January 3, 2026

Magic have to correct struggles defensively:

Dec 26, 2025; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley looks on during the second quarter against the Charlotte Hornets at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images | Mike Watters-Imagn Images

We've seen bad Magic offense over the last few seasons. But we've rarely the seen Magic play poor defense under head coach Jamahl Mosley -- at least to this extent.

While Orlando currently sports the No. 10 defense, it's No. 22 over its last 10 games, surrendering 118 points per 100 possessions over that span. That's way below the standard we're used to seeing from the Magic, who have been a top-3 defense in each of the last two seasons.

"(The Chicago Bulls) came out and they went on multiple runs," Mosley said. "You've got to keep the same poise, the same demeanor when teams do go on runs. Bow how do you stop those? That's a big key for us as we continue to move forward."

The #Magic won the 1st quarter 33-22 before the Bulls outscored Orlando 99-82 the rest of the way.

Jamahl Mosley: “You’ve got to keep the same poise, the same demeanor when teams do go on runs. But how do you stop those? That’s a big key for us as we continue to move forward.” pic.twitter.com/eKLqISGxpz
— Jason Beede (@therealBeede) January 3, 2026

There hasn't been the same energy or physicality defensively. If the Magic aren't able to prevent paint touches and make life difficult for opposing offenses, they aren't going to go on any deep run -- let alone a long one.

We know the Magic have to make shots. But they have seemingly lost their backbone defensively -- relative to expectation -- which has led to multiple underwhelming results through the team's first 35 games. That can't continue.

Now is the perfect time to correct those issues, beginning with the Indiana Pacers Sunday at 3:00 p.m. EST.