NBA Game of the Week: Celtics vs. Magic

This Friday night, the up-and-coming Orlando Magic will travel to Boston to take on the reigning champs.

Orlando currently sits fourth in the Eastern Conference, an impressive feat considering it has been without star forward Paolo Banchero, forward Franz Wagner, and guard Jalen Suggs for the majority of the season up to this point.

Banchero returned last week against Milwaukee and picked up right where he left off: looking like a top-10 player in the league in just his third season. He made his first all-star team last year and is on pace for All-NBA this time, averaging 29 points, eight rebounds and five assists while shooting 50% from the field and 40% from three.

Wagner, who is still recovering from a right oblique tear, also took a leap this season, going from 19.7 to 24.4 points per game on the same minutes.

Defensively, the Magic are top-tier, leading the league in opponent PPG with just 103.2.

The team’s glaring weakness comes in their shooting, ranked 26th out of 30 in field-goal percentage and dead last in 3-point percentage. Orlando can’t seem to knock it down, especially from deep.

Switching gears over to the Celtics, they are still a huge powerhouse in the East but are far from being as untouchable as they were last season, which is surprising as the roster has remained relatively the same.

As of January 14, they are 28-11, still great, but only good for second in the East behind Cleveland (33-5). They are still the favorites to win the championship this year.

Jayson Tatum has been as consistent as ever, averaging career-highs in both rebounds and assists. His partner in crime, Jaylen Brown, is going through a bit of a shooting slump, with a dismal 31.8% from three, down from his career average of 36.1%.

Someone who's taken a big step forward this year for the C’s is backup point guard Payton Pritchard. In the last few years, he’s gone from an end-of-the-bench player to leading the 6th-man-of-the-year race this season: putting up career highs in almost every stat, he does so on 46/41/84 splits.

The team is within the top 15 in nearly every team stat that matters, and shoots a ridiculous 50 3-pointers per game.

For this matchup, the Magic have one objective: don’t let the Celtics shoot. A task that they of all teams are best equipped to do. Boston is at its best when the game is a shootout. The Celtics are 0-3 when held to less than 105 points. Once again, the Magic average 103.2 OPPG.

As for the Celtics, their goal is the exact opposite, which is to force the Magic to shoot bad 3-pointers. Orlando already shoots 30% as a team, but contesting these shots even harder and taking away the paint from Banchero will make the game much easier.

FINAL PICK: CELTICS 112-104

Chris Vadnais is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email cmv5562@psu.edu.