Jalen Suggs set the tone early as the Magic stunned top-seeded Detroit Pistons 112-101 to take a 1-0 series lead.
The message by the Orlando Magic was clear when Jalen Suggs picked a pass meant for Detroit Pistons’ Cade Cunningham, took it down for a two-handed dunk, and screamed less than four minutes into Game 1 of the series: they’re not scared of the Eastern Conference top seed. The Magic stunned the Pistons 112-101 to take a series lead after a 15-2 opening run set a tone that Detroit couldn’t recover from. Despite a home advantage with a packed stadium, the Pistons couldn’t garner any energy from it, outside Cunningham’s best attempt with a career-high 39 points in the playoffs.
Instead, Orlando took a shocking lead, led by Suggs who set the tone with 11 points in the first quarter. Star forward Paolo Banchero also played a role in that deafening opening statement, scoring 17 of his 23 points in the first half. In a complete turnaround from his clunker of a performance shooting against the Philadelphia 76ers last Wednesday – 7-of-22 and 0-of-5 from three – Banchero has shot 17-for-32 with 25 and 23 points to just five turnovers in the team’s last two wins.
Here is the full story from Magic Roundtable writer Don Strouble on the strong message coach Jamahl Mosley is sending to his team following the thrilling win.
Cunningham just couldn’t do it alone in his fourth game back from a collapsed lung, logging an impressive 40 minute. It was so lopsided that Detroit tied for the third-largest Game 1 deficit ever for a team who had won 60 games that season. The Magic were more aggressive in the paint, holding Jalen Duren to eight bounds and seven rebounds, and had better physicality and communication.
Here is the full story from Pistons Roundtable writer Eric Rutter on what went wrong in Detroit.
The Magic are playing their best basketball at precisely the right moment. They are leaving all preconceived notions from the regular season behind, heading back to Detroit with all the momentum ahead of Game 2. The Pistons are hoping their opening performance is a one-off.