Orlando Magic (44-36): Four Straight Wins, But Charlotte Has the Tiebreaker
Orlando beat a heavily shorthanded Minnesota squad 132-120 on Wednesday. Paolo Banchero led the way with 20 points and eight rebounds, Desmond Bane added 18 points and six assists, and Goga Bitadze contributed 14 points and 15 rebounds off the bench. Crucially, Minnesota rested Anthony Edwards, Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert, Ayo Dosunmu and Mike Conley with their playoff spot already clinched. The win extended the Magic’s winning streak to four games and moved them to seventh.
Nevertheless, the tiebreaker picture here is critical, and Charlotte leads the season series against Orlando 3-1. That means if the Hornets and Magic finish level on wins, Charlotte claims the higher seed. Orlando cannot simply match Charlotte’s record; they must finish ahead of them outright.
Head coach Jamahl Mosley kept it simple after the win over the East’s number one seed, the Detroit Pistons. “We said we wanted to be playing our best basketball at this time,” he said. “Winning four of the last six, that says something to what we are doing. It may not always be pretty in every game, but we have to find ways to win.”
Orlando’s two remaining games, at Chicago (eliminated) on Friday and at Boston on Sunday, look winnable on paper, particularly if the Celtics rest their starters ahead of the playoffs. Even so, the Magic need wins regardless of what the Hornets do, because the tiebreaker works against them in this matchup.
Philadelphia 76ers (43-36): Soft Schedule, Tiebreaker Advantage
The 76ers carry the most star power in this conversation. Tyrese Maxey averages 28.4 points per game. Joel Embiid usually keeps the frontcourt steady whenever he is available to play. Paul George went for a season-high 39 points against Washington last week and looks refreshed. Despite losing in San Antonio on Monday, head coach Nick Nurse remains confident in his group’s direction.
“I think we just started playing a little smarter offensively,” Nurse said after the Minnesota win. “We saw some things we could get to, and we did a good job of executing them, freeing guys up. … We did an excellent job of doing almost everything we wanted to in the second half offensively.”
Their closing schedule — at Houston Thursday, at eliminated Indiana Friday, and home against eliminated Milwaukee Sunday — is the most favorable of any team in this race. Importantly, Philadelphia leads the season series against Charlotte 2-1 and therefore owns the tiebreaker. That matters because a Hornets-Sixers tie in wins still leaves Charlotte below Philadelphia in the standings. Unlike with Orlando, where Charlotte holds the edge, the Hornets need to finish ahead of the Sixers in wins to claim a higher seed.
