Orlando Magic vs. Toronto Raptors Pick & Prediction JANUARY 21st 2025
Preview and Prediction
The Orlando Magic are anticipating another prosperous journey across the border as they get ready to take on the host Toronto Raptors on Tuesday evening.
The two teams initially faced off on January 3rd, with Orlando emerging victorious with a score of 106-97 despite losing guard Jalen Suggs in the second quarter due to a back strain. Suggs has remained out of action since that game and has already been ruled out for Tuesday's match.
Along with Suggs, the Magic were missing Goga Bitadze (concussion protocol), Jett Howard (ankle sprain), Gary Harris (hamstring strain), and Moritz Wagner (torn left ACL) in their 113-100 defeat against the Denver Nuggets at home on Sunday.
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Bitadze will not be playing on Tuesday, while Howard and Harris are questionable.
"I would be deceiving you if I said it wasn't challenging, because it is," stated Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley regarding the difficulty of having so many key players injured. "These guys are giving their all in these moments with what they have to work with."
Franz Wagner was also absent from Sunday's game for the Magic, who have lost three consecutive matches and five of their last six. Wagner is currently undergoing reconditioning to return from a torn oblique that he suffered on December 6th. He is expected to be back on the court within the next week.
Wendell Carter Jr. led Orlando with 16 points and 13 rebounds on Sunday. He started at center in place of Bitadze, who had 11 points and 13 rebounds in the previous game against Toronto.
"Goga is one of a kind, man," Carter praised. "He is definitely missed. His presence on the court, his intensity, his attention to detail... He gets it."
Paolo Banchero leads the Magic with an average of 25.2 points per game, although he has only played in 10 games due to a torn oblique that kept him out of action for over two months. He finished with 10 points on 4-of-16 shooting against Denver.
The Raptors have not played since Friday, when they lost 130-112 to the Milwaukee Bucks. Toronto had won their two previous games after a five-game losing streak.
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The Raptors' injury situation has improved, but Immanuel Quickley (hip) will miss his fourth consecutive game on Tuesday and Ochai Agbaji (hand) will be absent for a second straight match.
The Raptors are also facing the possibility of having to make trades, with guard/forward Bruce Brown being considered as one of the top candidates to be included in a deal. Brown, who is regaining his form after returning from knee surgery, scored 17 points off the bench on Friday.
"I have been in this situation for the past two years, so if (getting traded) happens, it happens," said Brown, who was traded to Toronto in exchange for Pascal Siakam from the Indiana Pacers.
"If it doesn't, I am happy to be here. It's a business, (rumors are) going to happen. I was completely shocked last year when I got traded, so this year it's whatever."
Kelly Olynyk, who scored 15 points as a reserve on Friday, could also be on the trading block.
"Now in my 12th year, I have been traded three times," Olynyk said after practice on Sunday. "If it happens, it happens. If not, you are where you are, and you will do your best to contribute to winning in that organization."
RJ Barrett had 21 points and 10 assists on Friday. He leads the Raptors with an average of 22.4 points per game. Scottie Barnes had 10 points, 10 assists, and eight rebounds against Milwaukee, while Jakob Poeltl had 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Orlando has won their last four games against Toronto.
Orlando vs. Toronto Recap APR 16TH 2021
Kyle Lowry contributed Toronto's first nine points to a game-opening, 12-1 flurry Tuesday night, propelling the Raptors to a 115-96 blowout win over the visiting Orlando Magic and a 4-1 win in an Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.
The second-seeded Raptors will move on to the Eastern semifinals, where they will hold the home-court advantage over either third-seeded Philadelphia 76ers or the sixth-seeded Brooklyn Nets.
With a chance to wrap up the best-of-seven set at home, the Raptors wasted no time taking charge. Lowry had three 2-point hoops and a 3-pointer in his early burst, and Kawhi Leonard added a three-point play as Toronto went up by 11 before the game was three minutes old.
The Raptors' surge didn't stop there. After Aaron Gordon dropped in Orlando's first basket 3:23 into the game to cut the gap to 12-3, Toronto immediately went on another 10-0 run to expand the lead to 22-3 at the 5:09 mark of the first period.
Lowry buried a second 3-pointer in the second spurt.
In winning for the fourth straight time after a series-opening loss at home to Orlando, the Raptors led 35-19 after one quarter and never allowed the Magic closer than 11 after that.
In fact, after building a 67-47 halftime advantage, Toronto never led by fewer than 17 points the rest of the way.
Leonard finished with 27 points and Pascal Siakam 24 for the Raptors, who had never previously won four straight games in the same playoff series.
Leonard's game-high total included 5-for-5 shooting on 3-point attempts.
Lowry totaled 14 points while Norman Powell added 11 and Serge Ibaka 10 for Toronto, which won the final four games of the series by a cumulative 75 points after dropping the opener 104-101.
Lowry also found time for nine assists, one fewer than teammate Fred VanVleet's game-high total.
The Raptors shot 48.2 percent from the floor in the win.
D.J. Augustin, the hero of Orlando's Game 1 win with a late 3-pointer, had a team-high 15 points for the Magic. Orlando was making its first playoff appearance since losing in the first round to Indiana in 2012.
Terrence Ross and Wes Iwundu had 12 points apiece, Gordon 11 and Evan Fournier 10 for Orlando, which shot just 38.6 percent on field-goal attempts.
Khem Birch grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds in the loss.