Stephen A. Smith blasts Orlando's inconsistency after a crushing loss, questioning their playoff readiness and attention to fundamental play.
Coming off a five-game winning streak, the Orlando Magic appeared poised to solidify their playoff position and avoid the play-in tournament. Facing a bench-led version of the Boston Celtics—who are locked into the No. 2 seed and resting key starters—the opportunity was there.
Instead, the Magic suffered a brutal 113–108 loss, falling short despite a late comeback attempt.
Following the defeat, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith voiced serious concerns about Orlando’s consistency and how the team has handled itself this season, including the disappointing performance, on First Take.
“I watched the entire second half of this game. I was, I was going back and forth between that mess,” Smith said. “I'm sitting there watching this man, and I'm going like this. What the hell is going on here? How in the hell are you losing this game if you're the Orlando Magic, when you consider, you know that boss is Sat damn near everybody you know you support, I mean,Paolo Banchero. I mean, I'm a huge fan of his. Love this guy, but I'm like, this, could you get him some help? You know, I saw Suggs hit a big-time three-pointer late in the game. But the point is this, you're looking at the Orlando Magic, by the way, a team that was riding a five-game winning streak. And remember this, Shai and Wendy, biggest reason for it is their performances in the third quarter. In the third quarter, you shoot like 55% from the field. You're averaging over 34 points over the five game stretch. You're doing your thing.”
What stood out most to him was that the Orlando Magic are still working through issues on routine plays, such as pick-and-roll coverage, along with overall communication breakdowns.
“In Boston, they get outscored in the third quarter,” Smith added. “Coming out of the locker room. At halftime, they get outscored 42 to 2042, to 20, and you have an opportunity to avoid being an eighth seed and potentially avoid it being a player, and this is what you do. So it just reminded you why we've been talking about Detroit and why we've been talking about Cleveland. We've been talking about Boston and New York, and, to a lesser degree, even Atlanta, but barely a peep has been mentioned about the Orlando Magic. Why? Because of performances like yesterday, just when you've got a shred of belief in them, just a speck of belief in them, something like that happens. It was an inexcusable loss without question. And I like the coach, I like Mosley and what have you, but yesterday was not their finest day, and then you're talking after the game about how you know what, they hit some tough shots, and we got to clean up our communication and pick and roll coverages.”
“Who the hell wants to hear that in game 82 of the regular season, we got to pick up our communication and pick and roll situations. Windy, how you feel about hearing that on the final game of the regular season? This ain't December. This is April. What the hell are you talking about? We got to pick about communication. That stuff was supposed to be worked out months ago. So I'm like, This is not good. It's not good at all.”
This ultimately raises concerns about whether the Magic can find enough consistency to win in the play-in following such a disappointing loss.
“And I don't know, listen right now, looking at the Orlando Magic, chances are, they might not even make the playoffs,” Smith said. “Chances are, I mean, they get. They could beat Philadelphia, but I seen Joel and B average 35 in a series against the Knicks on one leg. We know what Paul George can do if he gets going. We know what Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe can do. I mean, yo. I'm just looking at the team overall, no matter who plays for Philadelphia, because you never know what the infirmary they are. I don't even know the hell news gonna be available for them. But the point is, damn, you find yourself looking at the Orlando Magic and asking yourself, when the hell are y'all gonna get over the hump, particularly when you sent all of those picks to Memphis to get Desmond Bane, you were supposed to be better than this as a team, and it's just disappointing.”
Join the Community
Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news!
It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!
Be sure to subscribe to the podcast
For additional coverage, subscribe to our Full Court Magic Podcast!