Franz Wagner takes on a variety of topics during an in-depth interview with Hoops Hype’s Michael Scotto. With the Magic off to a hot start, Wagner and his teammates have their sights set on the postseason. “I think we want to make the playoffs,” he said. “Last year, I think we were four or five games out of the Play-In, and my first year, we didn’t win a lot of games at all, so that would be really cool. I’d be super excited for it, and we’ve still got more than 60 games left, so we’ve got to make sure that we keep putting in the work every day and keep getting better as well ..read more

With Jalen Johnson unavailable due to a wrist injury, the Hawks have been experimenting a little more with different frontcourt combinations, including playing centers Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu alongside one another, writes Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscription required). The pairing is very much a work in progress, particularly on the offensive end, but it showed some intriguing potential against bigger teams like San Antonio and Milwaukee, according to Williams. “There’s certain times in the game where that allows itself and there’s certain matchups where I ..read more

The Magic’s Jamahl Mosley has been named the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month, NBA Communications tweets. The Timberwolves’ Chris Finch earned Western Conference Coach of the Month honors. This is the first time that Mosley has won the league’s top monthly honor. It’s also the first time a Magic coach has received the honor since Steve Clifford in March/April 2019. During October and November, Mosley guided Orlando to a 13-5 record, which was second-best in the Eastern Conference and third-best in the NBA. The Magic went 11-3 in November. Finch also gained the honor the first time. He’s ..read more

Veteran wing Terrence Ross, who played 11 NBA seasons from 2012-23, officially announced his retirement on Friday evening via his podcast (YouTube link). Ross spent the first four-plus seasons of his career with the Raptors, who selected him eighth overall in the 2012 draft. He was traded to Orlando in 2017 in the deal that sent Serge Ibaka to Toronto and spent parts of seven seasons with the Magic prior to being bought out and waived in February, ultimately signing with the Suns to finish out the 2022/23 season. The 32-year-old was an unrestricted free agent this past offseason after his deal ..read more

Heat center Bam Adebayo went to the locker room in the second quarter of Miami’s Thursday victory over the Pacers after re-aggravating a hip injury, later being ruled out for the rest of the game. “He came in those last four minutes of the second quarter and he was just getting some treatment at halftime with the intention to come back,” head coach Erik Spoelstra said, per Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “I basically talked to him in my office and just said, ‘Look, you’re laboring like the fourth quarter of the New York game and it’s November right now. I’m not putting you back in in the s ..read more

The Magic had several chances to advance to the final eight in the in-season tournament, but nothing went their way Tuesday night, per Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando could have won East Group C with a Toronto victory over Brooklyn or a Boston win over Chicago by fewer than 22 points. The Magic also had a chance at a wild card if Miami had won at Milwaukee or New York had beaten Charlotte by fewer than four points. Orlando wound up getting eliminated despite a 3-1 record and a +22 point differential ..read more

Speaking to the media on Tuesday for the first time since breaking a bone in his left hand nearly four weeks ago, Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. admitted that he was frustrated at the time of the injury, knowing he would likely be facing an extended absence. However, he’s in better spirits now after having his cast removed, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). “Today was probably one of the best days of my life,” Carter said on Tuesday. “When [the doctor] was saying I didn’t have to wear the cast anymore, it was like, ‘OK, it’s another step in the right directio ..read more

The NBA in-season tournament will reach the quarterfinal stage next week and the eight qualifiers and their seeds were finalized on Tuesday. The 22 teams that failed to advance had two holes in their schedules that needed to be filled. Those matchups were determined late Tuesday evening, with each team receiving a home and away contest, NBA Communications tweets. The newly-scheduled games will take place next Wednesday (December 6) and Friday (Dec. 8). The Cavaliers and Magic, who missed the quarterfinals despite their 3-1 tournament records, will face each other in Cleveland on Wednesday. Cle ..read more

Suns guard Devin Booker and Magic forward Paolo Banchero have been named the NBA’s players of the week, the league announced on Monday (via Twitter). Booker, who won for the Western Conference, led Phoenix to a 4-0 week. He averaged 30.3 points, 7.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.0 block on .481/.429/.902 shooting in his four appearances, including a game-winning three-pointer over the Knicks on Sunday. The Suns have won seven straight and currently hold an 11-6 record. Banchero, the East’s winner, guided Orlando to a perfect 4-0 week. The 2023 Rookie of the Year averaged 23.5 points ..read more

Magic players were calculating their chances of advancing out of the East’s Group C after beating the Celtics on Friday to improve to 3-1 in the in-season tournament, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. Paolo Banchero admitted the team wasn’t fully focused on the tourney when it lost its opening game against Brooklyn, but the attitude has been different in three straight victories against Chicago, Toronto and Boston. Orlando has a strong shot at winning its group and reaching the knockout round, but things could still change on Tuesday, Beede adds. The Magic will advance if the Nets lo ..read more