The Lead
In their four wins this season, the Orlando Magic were the sharper team. Even in some of their narrow losses, they hung in there by making all the hustle plays (or “bell plays” as they call them), playing physical, and by limiting their opponent from getting a lot of open threes off drive-and-kicks. Against an elite opponent like the Milwaukee Bucks, those things needed to be done at peak level. They were in the fourth quarter with the reserves on the floor, as Orlando trimmed a 29-point deficit to six late, before falling 117-108 on Saturday night.