The NBA regular season continues to wind down over the next couple of weeks with just a handful of games remaining on the schedule. Some teams will inevitably see their campaigns end, but the Phoenix Suns and Orlando Magic are each locked into postseason spots and continue to battle for seeding purposes over the coming days. Tonight, they face off in Florida for this interconference clash.
Here’s a Suns vs. Magic prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Tuesday’s contest.
Suns vs. Magic prediction, preview
Phoenix Suns
It’s been a wild season for the Suns, who somehow have managed to stay relevant despite an injury-riddled campaign for star Devin Booker and the ragtag band of role players surrounding him. At 42-33, they currently sit seventh in the Western Conference with 3.5 games between themselves and the sixth-seeded Houston Rockets. Oh, and they’ve done it all without Kevin Durant and the young talent they got in return for the superstar, Jalen Green, with the latter dealing with his own injury woes until the last month or so.
Phoenix falls 15th in NETRTG at +1.9 and 25th in pace, leaning on defense above all else. The Suns allow just 111.1 PPG to opponents, sixth fewest, and they’re 11th in DEFRTG as well. In particular, they excel at taking away the three-point shot and are top five in opponent 3PA, 3PM and 3P%. They’re also disruptive with the third-most turnovers by opponents on a per-game basis. While Phoenix scores only 112.9 PPG, it does sit 14th in OFFRTG. Interestingly enough, the perimeter game is the focus on this side of the ball as well with a 36.3% 3P% that ranks eighth, plus the fifth-most 3PA and fourth-most 3PM per contest. The Suns are third worst from the field with a 45.5% FG% though, and they’re uninspiring in playmaking with 25.0 assists a game and a 1.755 AST/TO ratio. They’re also 19th in rebounding with 43.2 boards a night.
All-Star Devin Booker brings a team-best 25.7 points and 6.0 assists a night as the centerpiece of the attack, also coming off a 36-point outing in his last appearance. Jalen Green averages 18.3 PPG as a streaky, but electric, scoring option as well. However, reinforcements are on the way as Dillon Brooks is set to return from an 18-game absence due to a hand injury, bringing a career-best 20.9 PPG back into the fold. Phoenix hasn’t yet submitted an injury report coming off a back-to-back, but Grayson Allen (17.3 PPG) missed last night’s contest due to injury management and could return.
Orlando Magic
The Magic, meanwhile, have dropped amidst a brutal 3-7 skid over their last 10 games. Now sitting tied for eighth in the Eastern Conference, a trip to the Play-In Tournament looms unless they can close the three-game gap on the Atlanta Hawks for sixth place. There are a couple of other teams close behind though, and Orlando continues to battle its own injury woes as Franz Wagner and Anthony Black remain sidelined.
A NETRTG of +0.2 puts the Magic 17th in the stat and they operate at 15th in pace overall. One could say this is a pretty well-balanced team that doesn’t excel in a particular area, scoring 115.3 PPG while giving up 115.1 PPG on the other end. They’re 18th in OFFRTG and 15th in DEFRTG as well. Orlando shoots 46.3% overall and 34.4% from deep, but the team does rank second in free throw rate to make up for the relative inefficiency. The Magic also dish 26.3 assists with a 1.910 AST/TO ratio that ranks 10th. They also fall in right alongside the Suns on the glass, producing an identical 43.2 rebounds per game.
Of course, this team is much better when fully healthy, but they’re missing two of their four top scorers in terms of raw production. Paolo Banchero brings 22.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists a night, plus Desmond Bane averages 20.3 PPG with a 39.0% 3P%. However, they’ve struggled to carry the load as of late with pressure and fatigue mounting. Jalen Suggs provides 13.7 points with 5.2 assists and Wendell Carter Jr. produces 11.7 points with 7.5 rebounds.
Suns vs. Magic pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Magic as -1.5 favorites tonight at home with -125 odds on the Moneyline. The Suns are listed at +105 odds on the ML with the game total set at 224.5 combined points.
Phoenix is on short rest tonight and is just 6-8 ATS and straight up when playing on night two of a back-to-back, so that’s certainly a number to note for this one. Last time these teams met, it ended in a 113-110 win for the Suns as well. In that contest, Wagner once again missed but Black was healthy for Orlando, with Allen and Williams both healthy for Phoenix as well.
After the previous matchup narrowly went under tonight’s 224.5 total, I do like a repeat of that outcome here on Tuesday. Neither side ranks towards the top of the league in pace, and while the Magic have keyed in less on a defensive identity than in years past, the Suns have certainly made that a central focus themselves. With shot volume perhaps at more of a premium, scoring could be down. Couple that with how Orlando ranks third in opponent 3PA and first in opponent 3PM, and suddenly it seems the best avenue of attack for Phoenix could take a further hit. Yes, Brooks’ return helps, but neither offense is particularly inspiring. I still like the under.
Top pick: Under 224.5 points (-110)
