ORL • Guard • #0
With four starters sidelined and the fifth, Cory Joseph, only playing six minutes, Black played plenty on Friday. While the points, rebounds, assists and steals were solid, the second-year point guard was also responsible for five turnovers. Black will be in Orlando’s postseason contention, but the last two games should mean more opportunities for him to play with the ball in his hands. Overall, he was good on Friday, and Sunday’s game against the Hawks will present a similar opportunity.
11 days ago
April 12, 2025 1:50 AM
ORL • Center-Forward • #34
3 days ago
Give Carter credit for his work on the boards and for being Kristaps Porzingis’ primary defender for most of Game 1. However, the offensive production was lackluster, a trend that also persisted during the regular season. Carter’s average of 9.1 per game was the lowest of his NBA career; this was the first season in which he failed to average double figures. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner will do most of the heavy lifting offensively, but they’re going to need help in this series. Fellow starters Carter, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (6/4/2/3 with two three-pointers) and Cory Joseph (zero points, two assists) combining to score 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting isn’t good enough. Game 2 is on Wednesday night.
ORL • Forward • #22
3 days ago
Wagner did record a complete stat line in Sunday’s series opener, but the efficiency left something to be desired. Worse than the field goal percentage was the fact that he recorded as many turnovers as assists, finishing with five of each. Given the decided disadvantage the Magic are at offensively in this series, they’re going to need a consistently elite Wagner if they’re to have a chance of winning this series. He’ll look to bounce back in Game 2 on Wednesday.
ORL • Forward • #5
3 days ago
Banchero was excellent in Game 1, scoring 19 points in the first half and another 17 after the halftime break. Unfortunately for the Magic, he was the only player who could consistently create opportunities offensively. A difficult matchup for most teams due to his combination of size, athleticism and skill set, this could be a big series for Banchero individually. However, the prevailing question is whether or not Orlando will be able to generate enough offense collectively to have a chance of beating the reigning champions. Game 2 is on Wednesday night.
LAL • Guard • #15
about 6 hours ago
Reaves really struggled in Saturday’s loss in Game 1, and some of those shooting woes carried over into Game 2. He didn’t hit a three-pointer, which was just the third time that has happened since the calendar flipped to 2025. However, he was more efficient from the floor overall. The offense will continue to run through Luka Doncic, which means Reaves will continue to get good looks from beyond the arc. He just needs to start making them. Look for that to start happening in Game 3 on Friday.
MIN • Guard • #5
about 6 hours ago
After scoring 22 points in Minnesota’s Game 1 win on Saturday, Edwards had another strong scoring performance in Game 2. However, that didn’t result in another road win for the Timberwolves. Edwards was one of the team’s only sources of offense, along with Julius Randle. The pair combined to score 52 of their 85 points, with the other starters contributing 14 points and the bench supplying 19 points. Still, Minnesota did what they set out to do. They now have homecourt advantage in this series and will look to defend it in Game 3 on Friday.
MEM • Guard • #22
about 8 hours ago
While Bane didn’t have a big night scoring the basketball, he found a way to impact the game in other ways. Bane led Memphis in rebounding, was second in total assists, and was the only member of the Grizzlies to notch a double-double in the loss. He’ll have another chance to stuff the stat sheet on Thursday when the Grizzlies take on the Thunder in Memphis for Game 3.
