The Orlando Magic visit the Washington Wizards on Thursday night at Capital One Arena. Orlando enters with a 37-40 record and is currently seventh in the Eastern Conference standings. Washington is 17-59 and in last place in the East, with their focus now on developing young talent.
These teams have played three times this season, and Orlando has won all three by double digits. The Magic won the most recent meeting 120-105 on March 21. They’ve also covered the spread in eight of the last ten head-to-head games. The Magic are 14-point favorites going into this one.
Magic Preview – Fighting to Stay Above the Play-In Line
Orlando is 8-5 in its last 13 games and trying to hold off Brooklyn and Chicago for the seventh spot. The Magic are coming off a 116-105 win over San Antonio. They scored 37 points in the fourth quarter to pull away. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner led the way with 24 points each.
Banchero is the go-to scorer at 25.8 points per game and adds 7.3 rebounds. Wagner is averaging 24.2 points and leads the team with 4.8 assists per game. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has become a key contributor as well, hitting eight of 11 shots for 23 points in the last game. Wendell Carter Jr. is also averaging 7.3 rebounds per game.
The Magic are 17-21 on the road and rank among the league’s best in free throw attempts. Even with Jalen Suggs and Moritz Wagner out, the team has relied on strong ball movement and a top-10 defense. Orlando is also one of the better under teams in the league, with the total going under in 44 of 71 games.
Wizards Preview – Building for the Future
The Wizards ended a long losing stretch with a surprise win over Sacramento on Wednesday. They beat the Kings 116-111 behind 23 points from Jordan Poole. Rookies Bub Carrington and AJ Johnson added 19 points each, while Alex Sarr had 15 points and 4 boards. The win snapped a five-game losing streak.
Poole is the top scorer this season, averaging 20.6 points and 4.5 assists per game. Sarr has become a bright spot with 13.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, and he’s scored in double digits in 10 of his last 12 outings. Johnson has averaged over 16 points over his last four games and brings energy to the backcourt.
Washington is 8-30 at home and has allowed 120.8 points per game, the most in the league. They rank last in field goal percentage and three-point shooting. Despite this, the Wizards have been slightly better lately, covering in two of their last three games and getting strong efforts from young players off the bench like Tristan Vukcevic and Julian Champagnie.
Betting Prediction
The Magic are favored by 14 points and the total is set at 215.5. Orlando has dominated this matchup all season and is still motivated with playoff seeding at stake. Washington has been competitive in a few recent games but still struggles to string together stops on defense.
Orlando’s defense should limit Washington’s young offense. If Banchero and Wagner continue their strong play, the Magic should take care of business on the road. The Wizards are improving slightly, but Orlando should still win and cover with a final score around 112-94.
Pick: Orlando Magic -14
Take the Magic to win easily over the Wizards.
