The Orlando Magic suffered a heartbreaking 132–120 loss to the New York Knicks, ending their run in the NBA Cup semifinals and sending them home from Las Vegas. Orlando was one of the final four teams remaining in the tournament and needed a crucial win to advance, but the game stayed back-and-forth until late in the fourth quarter. A strong closing stretch from Jalen Brunson proved to be the difference, as the Knicks pulled away down the stretch to secure the victory.

While the Magic hoped to advance to the NBA Cup Finals, they walked away from the hard-fought matchup with valuable lessons. Chief among them was coach Jamahl Mosley’s emphasis on maintaining defensive intensity and consistent effort, especially in high-pressure moments against elite competition.

 "This was a great experience for our young team to recognize exactly what we need to do in these moments—defensively sticking to our game plan and defending the right way, allowing that to dictate our offense,” Mosley said. “Defending early without fouling. It’s a great opportunity for our guys to look back and learn how we need to play consistently. We’ve been playing some good basketball—just tonight give New York a ton of credit for how they came out and played."

The NBA Cup proved valuable not just financially, but because it mirrors the intensity and atmosphere of playoff basketball. With the Magic’s ultimate goal set on making a deep postseason run, that environment matters and for a player like Paolo Banchero, the loss served as an important test and learning experience moving forward.

"It’s definitely motivating. I’m sure everybody wishes we played better on a stage like this against a good team we could see later on,” Banchero said. “It shows us what we need to work on and how we can be better later on for the springtime."

Similarly, guard Desmond Bane echoed that sentiment, emphasizing that the NBA Cup experience will pay dividends down the line as the team continues to grow and prepare for the kind of pressure moments that define playoff basketball.

"It’s huge we need these moments,” Bane said. These games where we’re playing meaningful basketball and have to go through some adversity. It’ll help prepare us for our next challenges."

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