Orlando, FL – Paolo Banchero vs Jabari Smith Jr. That was the highlight of this upcoming matchup ever since draft night when the Magic shockingly selected Paolo Banchero number one overall. Up until draft night it was almost set in stone that the Magic would select Jabari Smith Jr according to most media outlets and NBA insiders. The Magic would shock everyone including Banchero and Smith Jr, this no doubt set the stage for some potential fireworks. Smith Jr. would begin the day doubtful to play, but would wind up suiting up and starting opposite of Banchero at power forward.
Paolo and Franz started the 1st quarter hot from the field, going 4-5 collectively. Paolo set the tone with two early buckets, a three point shot and a mid-range jumper. Franz started at SG yet again and ran the offense well. Jalen Suggs would begin to take over following Houston’s first timeout around the 7-minute mark, scoring 6 of his 8 points in the quarter consecutively. While offensively they started hot, the Magic would struggle guarding the three ball from early on. Eric Gordon and Jalen Green would go 6-11 as a tandem in the 1st quarter. Overall however, the Magic would finish the quarter down only two with Banchero, Suggs and Wagner scoring 23 of their 30 points in the quarter, Meanwhile Green and Gordon led the Rockets with a combined 21 of their 33 points. Meanwhile, Jabari Smith Jr. would finish the quarter with 0 points in 8 minutes on 0-1 shooting.
The Magic would struggle with some careless turnovers to begin the 2nd quarter, but would clean it up for the most part behind a strong showing from Mo Bamba off of the bench, who scored 9 of his 11 points in the quarter on 5-6 shooting. Franz and Paolo would each chip in with another 7 respectfully. The team would ultimately struggle with foul trouble for the rest of the quarter, putting Houston in the bonus with about 8 minutes left, their biggest deficit being 8 points. They would fight their way the rest of the quarter but would wind up finishing the first half down 71-65.
Coming out of the half time break, Banchero would be the lone bright-spot, scoring 6 quick points early in the 3rd quarter. The foul and turnover woes would continue for the Magic, however, as they would have another 7 total in the quarter, which the Rockets scored off of every-time. Ultimately, The 3rd quarter struggles for the Magic continued tonight as they would be outscored 29-23 and find themselves down 12 heading into the 4th quarter.
The 4th quarter would begin with Terrence Ross scoring 6 straight points. Ultimately however, the inability to guard the three point line all night long would be the downfall for the Magic as Houston would knock down three unanswered three point shots ballooning the lead to 15 with 7:27 left in the game. The Rockets would maintain the lead throughout the rest of the quarter and end up with a 134-127 win.
This was a tough loss for the Magic; they had difficulty guarding the three ball and their untimely turnovers would ultimately cost the Magic the game.
When I asked what led to the slow 3rd quarter once again and what they needed to improve on going forward, Coach Mosley responded “Understanding that we need to come out and set the tone early, let it be our defense that starts it and let it flow to our offense.” That lack of defensive urgency would reflect mainly in the shooting totals as Houston went 24-48 from behind the arc while the Magic only shot 12-25. While they shot a good percentage, the total number of three point shots made wasn’t nearly enough to come out with the victory.
While overall it was another disappointing outcome, the entire Magic organization and fans can rejoice in knowing they drafted a superstar in Banchero, and made the right decision drafting him over Smith Jr.
Banchero would finish the game with 30 pts on 8/16 shooting, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists while Smith Jr. finished with only 3 points on 1/4 shooting 1 rebound and 1 assist. Now let’s hope the Magic can turn it around on Wednesday night when they will host Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks and get a much needed win.