Magic Set to Play Hawks

The Orlando Magic (0-1) travel to Atlanta to face off against the Hawks (1-0) Friday. In series history, the teams have met 127 times with the Hawks having an all-time advantage of 67-61.

https://twitter.com/ATLHawks/status/1583450560425906177

Magic Look to Equalize Record

Coming into the matchup, the Magic have four players ruled out due to injury. Point guard Cole Anthony is dealing with an illness and is considered a game-time decision.

Last year, Orlando had a field goal average of 43.4% compared to the Hawks with a 50% field goal average. The Magic finished last with an overall record of 26-60.

Despite the struggles last season, they played their first regular season game on Wednesday against the Detroit Pistons. The team lost 113-109, but Orlando had an impressive performance from No. 1 overall draft pick Paolo Banchero. He led the team with 27 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1582900824434364416

If Banchero continues his strong performance from his first game, expect him to be in contention for Rookie of the Year throughout the season.

Second year players Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner also impressed for Orlando against the Pistons. Suggs put up 21 points shooting 72% from the field while Wagner recorded 20 points with four rebounds and five assists.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks went 43-49 in the 2021-2022 season finishing ninth in the Eastern Conference.

Atlanta played their first regular season game on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets where they came out on top with a 117-107 win. The Hawks had four players score 20+ points in Wednesday’s game. John Collins and Trae Young led the team with 24 and 23 points, respectively.

Dejounte Murray added 20 points and 11 assists in his first game with Atlanta. Murray spent the past five seasons playing for the San Antonio Spurs.

Game Time

Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. in Atlanta. After the game tonight, the Hawks will have to bounce back quickly as the team takes on the Boston Celtics in their first home game of the season on Saturday.