DALLAS — Magic coach Jamahl Mosley, who was an assistant with the Mavericks for seven years before his arrival to Orlando, knows well what All-NBA guard Luka Doncic can do to opposing defenses.
It’s why Sunday night, when Mosley returned to American Airlines Center, the Magic coach made it clear before the game he didn’t want to “wake him up.”
Easier said than done.
Doncic had 25 by halftime before he finished with 32 in the 108-85 home victory over the visiting Magic, who were without Paolo Banchero (torn right abdominal muscle) for the second game of what could be over a month.
The Magic started fast and actually led early, but it was all Dallas (4-2) from the second quarter on as it commanded as much as a 33-point lead.
Orlando (3-4), which has dropped the first three contests of its 5-game road trip, has a quick turnaround when it heads to undefeated Oklahoma City (6-0) for the second night of a back-to-back Monday.
Starting 5
Rookie Tristan da Silva made the first start of his young career, joining Jalen Suggs (10 points), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (7), Franz Wagner (13) and Wendell Carter Jr. on the floor.
Carter (6 points) returned to the court after he missed Friday’s game at Cleveland due to right knee tendinitis. The injury issues continued for Carter, who was distraught on the bench in the second quarter after limping up and down the court.
He was ruled out at halftime due to a strain of left plantar fascia (bottom of foot) and Moe Wagner started the second half in his place.
Da Silva earned the start after he totaled 17 points against the Cavaliers but it was a different story for the rookie in Dallas. He ended with just 7 points in 34 minutes.
No Magic starter had reached double figures by halftime when Orlando shot 33.3% from the floor.
Second unit
With da Silva getting the start, Anthony Black moved back to the bench after he moved into the opening lineup at Cleveland.
A native of nearby Duncanville, Texas, Black joined Jett Howard, Gary Harris, Jonathan Isaac and Moe Wagner off the bench but Mosley worked to keep a starter on the floor at all times throughout the first three quarters.
Isaac helped to try to defend Doncic at times and matched his minutes with Dallas center Dereck Lively (11 points).
Howard (12 points) was more active in trying to create his own shot inside the perimeter but still had occasional success outside of it (2 of 8 from 3). He was one of two Magic players with more than one made 3-pointer.
Shooting struggle
As the Mavericks nailed 6 triples in the second quarter alone, Orlando shot 3 of 18 from distance in the opening half.
The Magic followed that up by shooting 3 of 14 on 3s in the third quarter before they finished 8 of 41 (19.5%) from beyond the arc on the night.
And as Orlando missed long-range attempts, Dallas (which had 52 paint points) ran the other direction off the long rebounds, which led to an easy 19-12 advantage in the fastbreak. It’s the type of mixture the Magic must avoid moving forward in order to get stops in their half-court defense.
Jason Beede can be reached at [email protected]
Up next …
Magic at Thunder
When: 9:15, Monday, Paycom Center
TV: FanDuel Sports Network Florida
Originally Published: November 3, 2024 at 10:04 PM EST
