Magic Host Hawks in Eastern Conference Battle

The Orlando Magic (26-28) look to pick up their second win in a row as they host the Atlanta Hawks (25-28) at the Kia Center Monday night at 7 p.m.

The Magic are coming off a close 112-111 victory against the San Antonio Spurs (22-28) thanks to a clutch last-second shot by forward Paolo Banchero.

WAGIC WIN 🪄 pic.twitter.com/T7RJYBHiEi

— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) February 9, 2025

The Magic are haunted by injuries this season. Banchero missed 34 games this season after a torn oblique suffered in October. Even with his return from injury on Jan. 10, the Magic have been inconsistent. After blowing out the Sacramento Kings (26-26) 130-111, they lost to the Denver Nuggets (34-19) 112-90. Now, hovering around the play-in spots, they’ll need to pick up some steam to guarantee their playoff spot. Maybe the close win against San Antonio was what the Magic needed to propel their confidence.

Season Stats

Both the Hawks and Magic are 5-2 against the Southeastern Division and are 3-7 in their last 10 games.

Orlando is averaging an even 104 points per game this season with Franz Wagner contributing 25 per game. He’s also averaging 5.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists. Banchero is averaging 22.1 points per game with 7.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists. The Magic are shooting a collective 43.9% from the field this season.

On the other side, Atlanta is averaging 116.2 points per game this season and are shooting 46.2% from the field. Guard Trae Young is scoring 23.5 points per game alongside 11.4 assists. The NBA announced him as an All-Star Monday, replacing Giannis Antetokounmpo, who will be out with a calf injury. The Hawks will miss forward De’Andre Hunter, who averaged an even 19 points per game before being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday. Caris LeVert and Georges Niang joined the Hawks in the trade. Niang scored 16 points in his Hawks debut on Saturday.

ALL-STAR ICE 🥶@TheTraeYoung is a 4x #NBAAllStar!! pic.twitter.com/Vj7KJOJrqR

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 10, 2025

Looking Forward

The Hawks and Magic are within a game of each other in the Eastern Conference standings and are both within two games of an automatic playoff spot. With the standings so close, a win against one of those middle-of-the-pack Eastern Conference opponents could make a big difference later in the season for playoff positioning. The Magic have a chance to separate themselves from the Hawks Monday night and cut the gap to the teams ahead of them.

Tip-off is at 7 p.m. and the game will air on FanDuel Sports Network Florida and FanDuel Sports Southeast.