The resurgent Orlando Magic will continue their playoff push on Tuesday when they face the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
The Orlando Magic has found themselves in a place they haven’t been since Dwight Howard left — playing meaningful games in February.
Sitting only a half-game behind the Charlotte Hornets for the eight and final playoff seed, the Magic will continue their surprising playoff push on Tuesday, when they visit the lowly New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
Orlando has won six of their last seven games, and outside of a one-point defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bulls, the Magic have been dominating their opponents. Their latest victory was a 113-98 thumping of the Toronto Raptors, which kept well within reach of the playoffs.
Usually, around this time, Orlando is planning for the summer, but thanks to a breakout year from center Nikola Vucevic and Sixth Man of the Year candidate Terrance Ross, the Magic have pulled themselves out of an early season funk, and now have a chance to make the playoffs for the first time since 2012.
New York snapped an 18-game home losing streak on Sunday, beating the road-weary San Antonio Spurs in grand fashion. With a Magic team that’s looking to keep the momentum for a playoff push, there wouldn’t be anything more satisfying for New York than to put a small hole in their balloon, especially to avenge a 131-117 blowout loss in Orlando back in November.
When: Tuesday, Feb. 26
Time: 7:30 pm EST
Where: New York, NY
Venue: Madison Square Garden
TV Info: Fox Sports Florida (Magic), MSG (Knicks)
Live Stream: NBA League Pass, FuboTV (sign up for a free trial)
While the Magic are thinking playoffs, the Knicks are thinking about the offseason.
With the trade of Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway III before the trade deadline, New York has officially thrown in the towel for this season, looking ahead at snagging one of the top-tier free agents this summer. While they may be in the basement, the players who are still on the roster have re-committed themselves to play spoiler.