When the Magic return to Kia Center on Monday night after facing the Pelicans in New Orleans on Sunday, Orlando will be hosting the top team in the Eastern Conference.
Detroit clinched the No. 1 seed in the East on Saturday with their 57th victory as the playoff picture continues to grow clearer by the day entering the final week of the regular season.
Orlando’s matchup with the Pistons, who secured the East’s top seed for the first time since the 2006-07 season, is the first of the final two home games this season. The Magic are 23-15 at Kia Center, 17-19 in road games and 1-2 at neutral sites.
After hosting Detroit, the Magic wrap up their home slate Wednesday against Minnesota before ending the regular season on the road with games at Chicago on Friday and at Boston next Sunday.
While the Pistons already know their exact seeding, the Magic still do not.
Orlando entered Sunday’s slate of games in ninth, but it can’t finish any higher than fifth, according to playoffstatus.com. The Magic, however, will need help to even rise that high in the East standings.
The team doesn’t control its own destiny for spots 5-8 in the conference. Orlando’s “magic number” — the number of games a team must win to guarantee a specific spot — to clinch the No. 9 seed outright is four.
According to basketball-reference.com, the Magic entered Sunday with a 34% chance to finish 10th, 32.7% chance to end ninth, 24.9% chance to reach eighth and just a 7.2% chance to finish seventh. Their chances at a top-six finish were 1.2% entering Sunday.
The top six seeds earn a guaranteed spot in the playoffs while seeds 7-10 in each conference compete in the Play-In for the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds in the playoffs.
Magic links to HOF
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame revealed the Class of 2026 on Saturday in Indianapolis and several of the nine inductees share connections to the Magic.
That includes Bucks coach Doc Rivers, who got his first chance as a NBA head coach in Orlando from 1999-2003. Rivers has amassed more than 1,180 wins in 27 seasons as a NBA coach with the Magic, Celtics (2004-13), Clippers (2013-20), 76ers (2020-23), and Bucks (2023-present).
“Congratulations to Doc Rivers on his induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame,” the Magic wrote on social media.
There’s also three-time WNBA champion Candace Parker, one of the most accomplished players in women’s basketball history. Her brother, Anthony Parker, is the general manager of the Magic.
Lastly, the class includes Gonzaga coach Mark Few, who guided the Bulldogs to NCAA championship game appearances in 2017 and 2021, 26 consecutive NCAA Tournament berths and 773 victories. Magic guard Jalen Suggs played one season for Few when the school reached the national title game in ’21.
The rest of the class features Amar’e Stoudemire (from Lake Wales), Elena Delle Donne, Chamique Holdsclaw, the 1996 United States Women’s National Team, coach Mike D’Antoni and referee Joey Crawford. The class will be celebrated during enshrinement festivities on Aug. 14-15.
Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com
Up next …
Magic vs. Pistons
When: 7 p.m., Monday, Kia Center
TV: FanDuel Sports Network Florida