Mike Bianchi: If Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner have no help, Magic have no hope vs. Celtics

Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel on Apr 20, 2025

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The uplifting news is this: Paolo Banchero was brilliant in Game 1 of the Magic’s playoff series against the Boston Celtics.

But the depressing news is this: Once again, it didn’t matter.

Game 1 should have been a statement. Banchero alone outscored Boston’s two stars — Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The Magic fell behind by 12 points early, weathered the onslaught and actually led at halftime. For a moment, the upset narrative was writing itself. Then reality grabbed the laptop and I had to start writing this new column.

A third-quarter collapse, a bench disappearing act and a 103-86 Celtics win flipped the script back to what most everybody expected — the Magic being outgunned and outclassed by the defending champions.

The loss to the Celtics wasn’t about effort or heart; it was about reality. And the reality is this: Banchero and Franz Wagner are stars, but stars can’t shine without a constellation around them.

This must seem like a cruel joke to Paolo. In his last two playoff games — Game 7 against Cleveland last season and Game 1 against Boston on Sunday — he’s scored 38 and 36 points. Two Herculean efforts and two losses. That’s the kind of production that should elevate a team to a monumental victory; not sink into the abyss of an embarrassing defeat.

This wasn’t just the Celtics defeating the Magic. It was the Celtics exposing the Magic. It revealed a Magic team that, for all its promise, simply doesn’t have the arsenal to compete with the elite. Yes, Paolo and Franz did their part and then some. Together, they scored 69 of Orlando’s 86 points. I don’t want the chances of winning are when an NBA team scores just 86 points, but I would think it’s akin to the percentage of finding both socks in the same load of laundry.

Sadly, Paolo and Franz accounted for 80.2% of the Magic’s offense, and still it wasn’t nearly enough.

Think about that for a second: Two young stars, 22 and 23 years old, went into the defending champs’ building and outdueled Boston’s to All-NBA players in Tatum and Brown. In fact, Paolo outscored Boston’s two stars by himself, 36 to 33, but the scoreboard told a different story:

Celtics by 17.

Why?

Because Boston is a symphony orchestra of talent and depth.

The Magic are Simon & Garfunkel.

Case in point: Boston’s Derrick White hit seven 3-pointers en route to 30 points. Payton Pritchard came off the bench firing, dropping 19 on 4-for-6 shooting from deep. Pritchard outscored the entire Magic bench.

“It’s something we harped on coming into the series,” Banchero said. “They do have two main guys, but it’s really the other guys that kill you.”

Meanwhile, Orlando’s other guys were just extras in the Paolo highlight reel. Starting point guard Cory Joseph took one shot and didn’t score. Starting center Wendell Carter Jr. scored just 4 points. Key offseason acquisition Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored just 6. And Cole Anthony, who led the Magic with 26 points coming off the bench in the play-in game against Atlanta, played just 10 minutes and scored only four.

I get it. Nobody gives the Magic a chance in this series. They are the biggest underdogs of the NBA postseason. But if they want to avoid being a footnote — or worse, a punchline — someone, anyone, has to rise up.

Look at the Boston blueprint. Boston’s stars had off nights. Tatum and Brown shot a combined 14 for 36, including 1 of 8 from distance. And, yet, the Celtics won in a rout. Because their infrastructure is built for moments like that. Because their bench doesn’t just survive. It thrives.

Don’t get me wrong, this is still a series. It’s 1-0, not 4-0. Don’t forget, the Cavaliers beat the Magic by 14 in last year’s series opener. Game 1s don’t define destinies. But they do offer glimpses. And what we saw Sunday was a Celtics team with layers, and a Magic team stretched way too thin.

This is not a condemnation of the Magic’s season. Despite all of the injuries, they earned their playoff spot. They deserve to be here. But being here and staying here are two different things.

If there’s any hope of extending this series, the Magic need a third man. And maybe a fourth. It doesn’t have to be 20 points a night. It can be momentum-swinging plays, defensive stops, made 3s when they matter. It just has to be something substantial.

If the story of this series becomes Banchero pouring in 35-plus while looking around and seeing no cavalry, then we already know how this series will end.

The Celtics are champions for a reason. They’ve built a system that can absorb bad nights from their stars. The Magic, on the other hand, are a work in progress. There’s no shame in that, but there’s no excuses either.

It’s time for the rest of the Magic to not just show up, but step up.

Otherwise, we’ll be left wondering how much more Paolo Banchero can carry before the weight breaks him.