Nets vs. Magic preview: Waiting on Pablo Banchero

SB Nation

A couple of days ago, the Denver Nuggets were able to beat a fully healthy Philadelphia 76ers squad in a 125-124 OT thriller, without Jamal Murray taking offensive control. The day before, Brooklyn had

beaten Denver 127-115 with Murray.

Now, it would be hard to talk trash because the Nets themselves got manhandled by the promising-but-still-not-very-good Washington Wizards. But still, you gotta admit, when the Nets need to be good, they can be (reasonably) good.

Tonight, the Nets will take on the Orlando Magic at the Barclays Center looking to get their second straight home victory. The Magic currently are the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. And just like the Nets, they have promising young talent that could propel them to a bright future.

Where To Watch

Check out the action at 7:30 PM on the YES Network and NBA League Pass, as well as streaming on the Gotham Sports App.

Injury Report

Ben Saraf is dealing with left knee soreness but is with Brooklyn. The four other members of the Flatbush Five are as well for the first time in a long time, while the three two-ways remain with Long Island. Nic Claxton will return and Brian Lewis reports that both Jalen Wilson and Tyrese Martin are getting their contracts guaranteed for the season.

For the Magic, Jalen Suggs (knee), Franz and Mortiz Wagner (sprained left ankle, knee) will not be available tonight.

The Game

Even though their record does not have them that high in the standings, they have a terrific young core that can do some damage in the future. Of course, sometimes like the Nets, they can fail vs. an even lower ranked opponent as they did Tuesday night, losing to the Wizards as the Nets did a few days ago, dropping them to 20-17.

The inconsistency starts with Paolo Banchero, who has potential to inflict damage with Franz Wagner missing action as of late. Even though this may be the case, Banchero’s scoring and presence has trended downward. Averaging 20.7 PPG so far in the season, this is a step back from his 25.9 PPG last season. Going with this, the Magic are 13-14 with him on the court. Without him? 7-3. On a personal level, Banchero didn’t even make the top 15 in the latest fan voting for the Eastern Conference All-Stars. What’s next for him? Stay tuned.

If Banchero won’t be able to lead the Magic, Players like Desmond Bane have the ability to pick up the slack. In his first season in Orlando, Bane has played well, averaging 19.2 points on 45.4% from the field and 35.1% from three.

With Jalen Suggs out, the Nets will have an easier time getting shots at the perimeter. Michael Porter Jr. should have another game where his difficult degree of shots will fall.

Player To Watch: Anthony Black

Just like last game with Peyton Watson, the Nets will be facing a young star who has taken an offensive megajump, and this time is on a grander scale. In his last 10 games, Anthony Black has scored more than 20 points four times, including a 38 point eruption against the Nuggets back in Dec 27. This season, Black’s development has taken trhe right strides as his scoring outbursts have come just in time, and something in which the Magic had hoped for back when they drafted him out of Arkansas almost three years ago.

Philip Rossman-Reich of Orlando Magic Daily had this to say about his change recently:

After two seasons playing in and out of the rotation, the team’s trades in the offseason squarely put him in the spotlight. It put all the pressure on him to deliver consistently. All those calls for him to be more aggressive would need to come to fruition.

His inconsistency is quickly disappearing. Black is quickly learning from his missteps, as young players do. He is quickly becoming his own player. He is quickly finding out exactly what he can do.

And he is quickly learning sometimes he has to be the one to put that on display.

The Vault

With the Magic coming to Brooklyn, I’d thought it would be nice to bring back an underrated classic between the Orlando Magic’s greatest player ever (a Newark native) and the greatest rapper ever, who just so happens to be from Bed Stuy.