ORLANDO, Fla. — When their season was on the line, the Orlando Magic discovered exactly what they needed to succeed: pure desperation.
That urgency proved to be the perfect recipe for success Friday evening, as Orlando delivered what may have been their most impressive showing of the entire campaign. The Magic dominated the Charlotte Hornets 121-90 in their Eastern Conference play-in matchup, securing their spot in the playoffs for a third consecutive year and earning a first-round series against top-seeded Detroit.
“When you play with a sense of desperation and urgency, when you know you’re either going home or extending your season, that’s what it looks like,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “There (are) no second chances.”
With this achievement, Mosley becomes the first Orlando coach to guide the franchise to three straight playoff berths since Stan Van Gundy accomplished the feat with five consecutive appearances. Van Gundy was present at Friday’s contest, working as an analyst for Amazon Prime Video.
“I’ve got to be honest. Charlotte is shrinking from the competition,” Van Gundy said on the broadcast, as the Magic were running away in the second quarter — building what became a 35-point lead shortly before halftime. “They look like they don’t want any part of this.”
Orlando’s aggressive, physical approach was precisely what they had hoped to achieve. The intimidating style of play delivered exactly the results they wanted.
“We’re going to need more of that in the playoffs,” Magic forward Franz Wagner said.
Added Magic forward Paolo Banchero: “We were just relentless with that tonight. … It was just a complete effort from the whole team.”
Charlotte coach Charles Lee, who has orchestrated a significant transformation during his first two seasons leading the Hornets, expressed hope that his squad will remember the valuable lessons from this defeat.
“I hope that this fuels us this offseason, because we’ve done a ton of really good things and gave ourselves an opportunity,” Lee said. “You’re one step away from being in the playoffs. I don’t want to discredit that. But this has got to hurt a little bit.”
The Magic battled through numerous injuries throughout the campaign, and a disappointing 2-8 record during a crucial 10-game stretch near the end of the regular season nearly derailed their postseason aspirations. However, Orlando has now captured six victories in their past eight contests, despite losing Wednesday’s initial play-in game at Philadelphia, setting up an underdog role against heavily favored Detroit.
“We did what we were supposed to do,” Mosley said. “There’s a reason we can be happy tonight. But at the end of the day, we still have more work to do.”
