The Magic continued their underwhelming 2025-26 campaign on Tuesday night, dropping a 120-112 decision to the lowly Wizards. Orlando is now 5-6 in it’s last 11 games, oscillating between wins and losses each contest. It’s not what you want to see from a team that was a popular dark horse candidate in the Eastern Conference to make a Finals run.
On the other side of the ledger, the Nets had no such aspirations this season. In fact, most people agreed that Brooklyn was in the midst of yet another all-out tank. However, while an 11-22 record isn’t all that impressive in a vacuum, it’s far, far better than anyone was expecting. Jordi Fernandez has his team playing hard.
Can the Magic rebound on the second night of a back-to-back set against a frisky Nets squad? Let’s preview this game with the help of some of some odds and lines on the DraftKings Sportsbook.
Magic vs. Nets prediction, preview
I mentioned above that the Magic have fluctuated between a win and loss for the past three weeks, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. The fact of the matter is that Orlando’s losses have been far more lopsided than its victories, which has left the team with a -3.9 net rating over its past 10 contests — the seventh-worst mark in the NBA in that span of time. For some context relevant to tonight: Brooklyn is also 5-5 in it’s last 10 games, but it owns the league’s 11th-best net rating (2.7).
The Nets are simply playing quality basketball at the moment, and for any Magic fan that had penciled in an easy couple of wins for this Washington/Brooklyn back-to-back, you’ve grossly overestimated the quality of your favorite team. It certainly doesn’t help matters that Franz Wagner (ankle) and Jalen Suggs (knee) are dealing with long-term injuries, but this organization needs more from Paolo Banchero. Full stop. Banchero was held to 14 points in Tuesday’s defeat, as he and the rest of Orlando’s starters were benched for the entire fourth quarter. For the season, Banchero’s scoring is waaaaaay down from 2024-25 and he’s shooting a putrid 26.5% from three-point range.
Conversely, Michael Porter Jr. is playing like an All-Star for the Nets. Porter notched a 27-point, 11-rebound double-double in Brooklyn’s win over Denver on Sunday, the continuation of what has been a breakout campaign for the 27-year-old. Porter is averaging career-bests in points per game (25.9) and rebounds per game (7.6), while also shooting a healthy 40.9% from three on a career-high 9.1 attempts per contest. It remains to be seen if Porter is long to stick around with the Nets — he has a year left on his contract and will be highly sought at the trade deadline — but at the moment, he’s doing everything in his power to help facilitate winning basketball.
Magic vs. Nets pick, best bet
Best Bet: Nets +2.5 (-115)
Orlando is just 7-12 ATS on the road this season — the fourth-worst mark in the NBA. On top of that, Brooklyn has a major rest advantage in this game. The Nets have played just three games in the past eight days. Meanwhile, the is the Magic’s third game in the last four nights.
