Orlando Magic has a good chance of winning the NBA title in spring 2026. That sounds naturally daring in spring 2025; Now that the franchise of the German basketball brothers Moritz and Franz Wagner in the “Best-of-Seven” series 1: 3 and before the away game in Boston on Tuesday before the first round of the professional league NBA. Usually this is the great time for what-hat’s matters, criticism of those responsible and calls for (personnel) changes.
However, if you take a closer look at how the season went and the games against Boston, at least defending champion and title favorite, and whoever looks at what could happen in summer can come to the judgment that Orlando will have pretty much everything a title team needs.
:Perfect time, perfect place?
The German basketball player Isaiah Hartenstein is experiencing the best season of his NBA career-at the currently most successful team in the league. Oklahoma City Thunder was looking for a player like him.
What does it need? First of all: at least two outstanding players. The 95: 93 victory on Friday and the 98:10 defeat on Sunday (in which it was less than four minutes before the end was 91:91) showed that they exist. In Franz Wagner, who only achieved 32 points, seven rebounds and eight templates and two days later 24-6-7 in these categories. And in Paolo Banchero, which 29 and 31 points get. The two have reached 58 points per playoff game so far, which is the best yield of all NBA-star duos; Better, for example than that of LeBron James and Luka Dončić from the Los Angeles Lakers (57.1).
Wagner is 23, Banchero even 22, the two are only on the way to the respective career best. Exactly that tried to convey coach Jamahl Mosley recently when he took the annoyed bancher to assist during a game and explained to him that he should save all the frustration of current experiences in memory and see it as motivation. Because it is true: this season could hardly have run much more frustrating. “We made up so much as a team, and of course I thought about my personal contribution,” Banchero had recently said: “But everything was very different.”
How it came about: Banchero was missing after an abdominal muscle tear 36 games, Wagner with the same injury 22 games. And it came even worse: a master candidate needs a third pillar and a guy called “emotionally leader”; a Dennis-Rodman-like Haudegen. Has Orlando, but Jalen Suggs, 23, and Moritz Wagner fail after serious injuries. What this means against Boston cannot be overlooked.
They want to guard the dangerous three shooters of the Celtics, but then do not have a tower under the basket – and Boston routinely takes advantage of this: The great people Jayson Tatum, Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis block the walking paths for fellow players and then immediately move to the basket. This “roll” in one of the basic game trains in basketball (pick and roll) leads to the decimated Orlando that Banchero defends against the eleven centimeter larger porzingis under the basket, foules must and gives the opponent a basket with additional free throw. If something like that happens again and again, you cannot win a “best-of-Seven” series.
Moritz Wagner was on the best way to be honored as the best one -person player
“Isn’t that great for Boston that because of the depths they are able to trust the interchangeable player Porzingis in important moments?” Said NBA legend Kenny Smith at half-time. One could only imagine the anger with which such a statement in the Magic cabin would be understood. Moritz Wagner was finally on the way before the cruciate ligament rupture with almost 13 points and five rebounds per game, at the end of the season as “Best Sixth Man”, ie the best substitute.
The epidemic season in numbers: The five regular players plus Moritz Wagner failed a total of 174 games. On average, two pillars were missing per game of the 82-game season. But as bitter as it is, the better the prospects are when everyone is healthy in the next season.
The team remains together, all contracts apply beyond the summer. The one by Franz Wagner ($ 227 million for five seasons) will only come into force. At the weekend he showed that he is perhaps the most versatile NBA player at the moment. He can do everything – except three, there is a worse quota in these playoffs with 21.8 percent than last season. Although he has just filed this throw, the rhythm that he could not work because of the abdominal muscle injury is missing.
What also speaks for Orlando is the second best defensive of the NBA. And as is well known, the defense wins championships. What Orlando needs is relief from the triple line and more depth under the basket. How fitting that you will have twice the right to vote in the first two rounds in the summer – a bonus from exchange shops of the past.
You really have everything for success in the future in Orlando. However, this future could begin with one year late. So you can either get talents at the Draft on June 25 – or the right to vote as an equivalent when trying to put together the puzzle parts for the coming season.
First of all, the talented team still has the chance to extend the series against Boston. In the night of Wednesday (2:30 a.m. German time) game five takes place.
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