The Orlando Magic snapped their four-game losing streak Thursday night to the Charlotte Hornets, securing a 123-107 win on the second night of a back-to-back. It was arguably Orlando’s most complete game of the season to date.
What were some of our takeaways? Let’s dive into it!
Oct 30, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley during the first quarter against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Instead of just Wendell Carter Jr. and Goga Bitadze as the lone two big men, head coach Jamahl Mosley threw in Jonathan Isaac to assume some backup 5 responsibilities in the first half.
It paid off, providing a spark offensively. He had three blocks in the second quarter alone, two of which led to five combined points in transition.
The Magic’s defense still wasn’t perfect, but Isaac’s defensive activity throughout was much needed. They haven’t been very disruptive through five games and needed to lean back into their defensive identity: Deflections, blocked shots, sound rotations, etc.
That’s exactly what Isaac provided Thursday in 15 minutes, a season-high, even though his role offensively remains spotty. The Magic forced 21 turnovers, including 10 live-ball turnovers that turned into 29 points. That’s the blueprint.
Oct 30, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Orlando Magic guard Desmond Bane (3) drives to the basket against Charlotte Hornets forward Moussa Diabate (14) during the first quarter at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Orlando entered the second night of a back-to-back with the fourth-worst offense, seventh-worst effective field goal percentage and 12th-worst true shooting percentage.
While some of the struggles from the free-throw line continuing, that wasn’t the case Thursday. Orlando lit up Charlotte with 123 points on 51.7 percent shooting and 42.1 percent from 3-point range (16-38).
Magic star Paolo Banchero was leveraging his gravity into smart decision-making, dishing out nine dimes and keeping the Charlotte defense in rotation; Franz Wagner was getting to his spots with ease; Anthony Black, starting in place of Jalen Suggs, had his most efficient shooting night of the season (more on him below).
Orlando will need to stack productive games offensively. Thursday was a good start, albeit against a Hornets defense that projects to be one of the worst in the East.
This is what good teams — or teams who want to be considered good — should be doing against bad ones. Let’s hope this is just a start to getting back on track.
Oct 27, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black (0) controls the ball against Philadelphia 76ers forward Justin Edwards (11) during the second quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Whether it was deflecting lobs, blocking Ryan Kalkbrenner from behind or his aggressiveness offensively, this was Black’s best game of the season, bar none.
It’s fair to characterize his start to his third season as rocky.
However, defensively, he was everywhere all night, helping quiet LaMelo Ball and Kon Knueppel. Offensively, the Hornets were daring him to shoot all night — and he made them pay, knocking down three of his six 3-pointers.
When he wasn’t taking shots, he was either keeping the ball moving or closing the space given to him, drawing contact and staying aggressive.
Franz Wagner, who scored a game-high 21 points, rightfully stole the show. But Black’s 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting can’t go ignored, especially since he had two blocks and steals apiece.
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