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Omari Sankofa II: Harris on the team's play late: "Just staying composed. Everyone understands from the last round, we've been here before. Just staying relaxed. "I think we learned a lot from the Orlando series to take us through this one, and our entire group is embracing playoff basketball."
Suggs, who has four guaranteed years remaining on his contract at descending salaries, could be a trade candidate as Orlando seeks to address its roster deficiencies and clean up its long-term cap sheet. But despite his rugged defense, his injury history might limit his attractiveness to potential trade suitors.
Shams Charania: BREAKING: The Orlando Magic have dismissed head coach Jamahl Mosley, sources tell ESPN. Mosley's tenure in Orlando finishes after five seasons, including three consecutive playoff runs from 2023 to 2026. Orlando had a first-round elimination for the third straight time Sunday.
Joe Cowley: Was told by a very good source that Orlando's locker room was a mess and Mosley had no control. He wasn't going to survive even if Magic got past Detroit. There's a major Banchero problem. Donovan would walk into a very talented but dysfunctional circus.
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Jeremias Engelmann: Jamahl Mosley - from what I've been told while with the Mavs - was somewhat of a manipulative schemer (though many higher-ups on NBA teams' payrolls appear to be) But Orlando went 3-1 with Franz Wagner - a player who remains underrated and clearly belongs among the NBA's top-15
Ohm Youngmisuk: Cade Cunningham said he and the Pistons learned a lot from the Magic, that Orlando made them have to look at themselves in the mirror. He gave a lot of credit to Orlando. “This series is really going to set us up for the next series and we are going to get a lot better.”
Omari Sankofa II: JB on Orlando missing 23 in a row: "That was a special performance. To hold them to 19 points in the second half, eight points in the final quarter, that was one of the defensive outputs that’ll go down in the history books."
Jason Beede: “There’s no other way to put it, it does suck,” #Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said after Orlando’s Game 6 loss to Detroit.
Jason Beede: Free throws and rebounding,” #Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said when asked what he felt were the differences between Orlando and Detroit in Game 5. “Free throws and rebounding.”
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Hunter Patterson: Asked Duncan Robinson about the process of generating quality looks against Orlando’s physicality: “These are two very physical teams. As a result, refs can’t call everything so you get a more physical style of basketball. I think in a lot of cases that favors us.”
Despite not having significant draft capital to acquire Antetokounmpo after making the Bane trade, Orlando has talented young players in former No. 1 pick Paolo Banchero and Wagner. Black also took a step in his development this season. Each player could have appealed to Milwaukee on paper, but it’s unclear how far the talks progressed between both sides. Ultimately, the Bucks kept Antetokounmpo despite various interest in him from across the league. They’ve since hired Taylor Jenkins, who was an assistant coach under Mike Budenholzer when the Bucks won 60 games and advanced to the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals. It’s worth noting that Antetokounmpo and Jenkins are said to have a good relationship, according to league sources.
His biggest moment came on a late three-pointer that helped Orlando regain control. “I shot it, didn’t feel bad,” Banchero said. “And then it bounced off the back rim, but when I saw how it bounced, went directly up. So the optimist in me was like, that’s going in.” He tied the shot to a mindset adjustment from earlier in the postseason. “I said after the Philly loss, basketball gods don’t reward hesitation,” he explained. “That one I didn’t hesitate and they blessed me with that make.” Orlando’s ability to respond after blowing a 17-point fourth-quarter lead reflected growth, according to Banchero. “When we got in the huddle once they tied it up, nobody was panicking,” he said. “Everybody just understood the moment.”
Omari Sankofa II: Asked JB Bickerstaff about the unique challenge of facing a physical Orlando team with similarities to the Pistons on both ends: “It’s going to come down to who does it more, who does it nastier and who does it longer … it’s going to come down to a war of attrition.”