It’s a return to being road warriors as the Orlando Magic travel to Oklahoma to face the Thunder in the midnight UK tip-off.
To watch this game between two of the NBA’s younger squads either live or on demand, you will need an active NBA League Pass subscription.
Last time out
Your Orlando Magic:
The Magic are fresh off a 94-90 win over the Golden State Warriors in Orlando. The young Magic team displayed grit, determination and performance in crunch time to grind this one out, much to the delight of the crowd at the Amway.
Wendell Carter Jr. once again produced the goods for the Magic with 19 points and 8 rebounds for the Magic. Carter has been on a roll recently and seemingly has broken out in the second-half of the season, earning plaudits from the Magic fanbase.
Impressive rookie, Franz Wagner chipped in with what is now a standard 18 points. Wagner’s consistent play this season has been a real source of hope for Magic fans and has shown what good scouting can do with the 8th pick of the draft. Cole Anthony also delivered 14 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, playing particularly well in the first quarter.
Orlando now have a record of 20 wins and 53 losses, putting Orlando 14 out of 15 teams in the Eastern Conference. Tonight’s match-up with the 20 and 52 Oklahoma City Thunder will be catching the eye for those watching lottery odds in both the Orlando and Oklahoma fan-bases.
The Oklahoma City Thunder:
The Thunder currently sit at 14th position in the Western Conference and are on a 10 game losing streak. The Thunder lost yesterday 132 to 123 against the in-form Boston Celtics. The Thunder had some huge offensive performances from Tre Mann with 35 points and 7 rebounds, impressive guard, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (31 points and 9 assists), forward Darius Bazley (22 points and 10 rebounds) and the confusing Aleksej Pokusevski, tallying 19 points and 6 rebounds. ‘Poku’ had a disastrous performance earlier in the week against the Magic and it will be interesting to see how he performs tonight.
OKC Overview:
The Thunder are in a very similar position to the Magic. The same position in their conference, an almost identical record, a commitment to youth and fully in a rebuild.
Oklahoma lost 90-85 against the Magic on Sunday in what was a poor game for any neutral…and any fan in general really! Notably, OKC were without their best player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. SGA played last night against Boston and could be a difference maker if he features tonight.
According to ESPN, SGA is day-to-day. Rookie sensation, Josh Giddey is out and will be joined in street clothes by Kenrich Williams, Lu Dort, Jerome Ty, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Mike Muscala and Derrick Favors.
The last starting 5 for OKC was: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tre Mann, Aaron Wiggins, Darius Bazley and Isaiah Roby.
Your Orlando Magic:
The Magic will be without our rookie point guard, Jalen Suggs, too. Jonathan Isaac and Bol Bol are ruled out for the remainder of the season.
As this is a back-to-back, Markelle Fultz will not feature. There are also question marks around Gary Harris and crucially, in-form Wendell Carter Jr.
Final Thoughts:
Hopefully this is a more entertaining affair than Sunday evening. The keys are likely whether Gilgeous-Alexander and Wendell feature for OKC and Orlando respectively. Carter Jr. would feast on what was thrown to him on Sunday in a career-best performance. Meanwhile, Gilgeous-Alexander has the talent to win this game with his scoring and playmaking.
All eyes on the announcement of the starters and as always, GO MAGIC!
