Opportunity to move up in standings knocks if Pacers can be beaten
Giving back
The Orlando Magic have an opportunity to take a jump in the Eastern Conference standings as they make a push to qualify for the play-in tournament.
Since the year started, Orlando has been stuck at No. 13 in the standings, jostling between being 1 to 4 games behind the team directly above them.
The Magic (25-35) will have the chance to jump to No. 12 Saturday at Amway Center vs. the Indiana Pacers (26-35), the team currently in that spot.
After Thursday’s results, the Magic’s 108-106 home win over the Detroit Pistons and the Pacers’ 142-138 overtime home loss to the Boston Celtics, Orlando is just a half-game behind Indiana.
It seemed unlikely 1½ months ago that the Pacers would be the team the Magic needed to jump over in the standings to get closer to competing for a play-in spot.
But Indiana has gone 3-16 in its last 19 games. The Pacers lost 9 of 10 games while All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton was sidelined from mid-to-late January but also have dropped 7 of 9 after he returned.
The Magic had a strong start to their post-All-Star break slate with Thursday’s win.
And they’ll have more work to do to climb to at least the No. 10 spot in the East regardless of Saturday’s results with slightly more than 20 games remaining in the regular season.
But a win Saturday would help their play-in/playoff aspirations significantly.
Local viewership
Magic games on Bally Sports Florida, the team’s network home, are averaging 122% more household impressions in the Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne market compared to this point last year, according to Bally Sports, which cited Nielsen Media Research data.
The metrics don’t include viewership of Magic games on the Bally Sports app or the Bally Sports+ streaming option.
The Magic’s Feb. 7 game against the New York Knicks was the team’s most-watched on Bally Sports Florida since December 2020, averaging 17,166 household impressions locally, according to the data.
Former Magic big man Mo Bamba, who was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers two weeks ago, made separate $1,000 donations to the GoFundMe accounts on Thursday evening to help cover the funeral costs for Spectrum News 13 journalist Dylan Lyons and 9-year-old T’Yonna Major, who were shot and killed Wednesday evening near a crime scene where a woman was found shot to death earlier in the day.
Magic coach Jamahl Mosley, who also made a $1,000 donation to the GoFundMe for the Major family Friday morning, addressed the tragedy ahead of Thursday’s game.
“My heartfelt condolences and prayers and thoughts are with those families,” Mosley said, “and all those impacted by this tragic event.”