The second game of pre-season saw the Magic fall in Atlanta to a 107-116 defeat. The loss proved to be a frustrating one to Coach Clifford who was critical of the team performance.
THE STORY OF THE NIGHT
The Hawks came out shooting last night. We trailed by 10 at the end of the first but rallied. The Magic came out with energy after half time but that familiar cold streak returned. It saw a 19-0 run from the Hawks in the 3rd that stalled the Magic offence. That was unfortunately the segment that sealed a Magic fall in Atlanta.
There were too many fouls by Magic players and at times the team were throwing bricks from the 3. For some stretches there seemed a lack of focus from players, leading to indiscipline.
It was great to see Markelle Fultz and Carl Anthony play so many minutes together. On the early evidence that pairing is looking like it has a strong future. Markelle led the team scoring with 21 points. Nikola Vucevic had his obligatory double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds. Aaron Gordon had 15 points on 19 minutes of play. Cole Anthony had 16 points from the bench.
Coach Clifford cut the rotations last night, using only 10 players as he increased the minutes for the main players. With most unusual indiscipline on the the night from Orlando the 10 turnovers and 27 fouls, combined with the Atlanta 3 point shooting were important to seeing us taking the loss, 107-116.
WHEN NEXT?
Next up is a double visit from the Charlotte Hornets in the Amway for the final two preseason games on Thursday and Saturday night.
PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS
Across our recent episodes of Penny For Your Thoughts we have spoken in some detail about this season’s Magic squad. In addition we’ve took a look in some part at the NBA Eastern Conference 2020-21 and a whole host more!
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