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The Lead
Paolo Banchero recorded 27 points, the most ever by a Magic rookie in their NBA debut, Jalen Suggs, back from his knee injury, scored 21 points, and Franz Wagner had 20, but Orlando came up short in a 113-109 loss to the host Detroit Pistons in the regular season opener for both teams on Wednesday night.
Clutch Plays
After layups by Wagner and Banchero pulled the Magic within one with under a minute left, Isaiah Stewart, off a kickout pass from Cade Cunningham, drilled a wide-open left-corner 3-pointer with 11.6 seconds remaining. Bojan Bogdanovic, acquired by Detroit last month, sank a pair of free throws with 4.7 seconds left to seal the Pistons’ victory.
Interesting Fact
With nine rebounds and five assists to go along with his 27 points, Banchero became the fifth player since the NBA-ABA merger, and the first since LeBron James in 2003, to record a 25-five-five performance in their NBA debut.
Interesting Note
Banchero and Jaden Ivey, the No. 1 and No. 5 overall picks, respectively, in the 2022 NBA Draft, made the game’s first two baskets. Banchero spun away from Saddiq Bey for his first NBA regular season bucket, while Ivey, who finished with 19 points, made a cutting layup for his first two points as a pro.
Memorable Moments
Banchero’s dunk in transition over Cory Joseph will almost certainly be featured on the NBA’s Top 10 plays of the night. Suggs, meanwhile, got hot in the third quarter with four 3-pointers in the final four-plus minutes of the period.
Injury Report
Cole Anthony (illness), Markelle Fultz (toe), Moe Wagner (sprained right midfoot), Gary Harris (left knee rehabilitation), and Jonathan Isaac (left knee rehabilitation) were unavailable for the Magic. Marvin Bagley III (sprained right knee), Alec Burks (left navicular; fracture), and Isaiah Livers (right hip soreness) were out for the Pistons.
Quote of the Day
“A moment that you’ve been working for my whole life – trying to get to this point right here. It’s definitely a milestone. I’m proud of myself for getting here. But also, this is the start. It’s not the end. You just have to come in and be prepared, be ready and play our best, play my hardest.” – Banchero
Rivals Report
Very much like the Magic, the Pistons are in the process of establishing a direction and identity. They feature several promising young players, including two top five draft picks each of the last two years in Cunningham and Ivey. Those two must mesh well for Detroit to make strides. The same can be said for their frontcourt players. Stewart plays with boundless energy; Jalen Duren has the potential to be a rebounding machine and a great alley-oop target; and Bagley, when healthy, is one of the springier bigs in the entire league.
Up Next
Before playing their regular-season home opener on Saturday, the Magic will make a stop in Atlanta for a Friday night showdown against the Hawks. It will be the first time Seattle natives Banchero and Dejounte Murray, acquired by Atlanta over the summer, will square off since trading barbs over social media following a chippy pro-am meeting a couple months ago. Banchero will also play against his college teammate, AJ Griffin, for the first time since they became pros. The two helped Duke reach the NCAA Final Four last season.
For more News about the Orlando Magic visit: www.orlandomagic.com
For more sports coverage from NBA,NFL, to NCAA contact Julian Ojeda: julian@communitynewspapers.com
