Franz Wagner has proven to be unstoppable in the first two meetings against the Brooklyn Nets and also is helping the Orlando Magic withstand the absence of Paolo Banchero.
Wagner attempts to produce another big showing Sunday afternoon when the Magic visit the Nets and try to stretch their winning streak to six games.
Wagner is helping the Magic outscore the Nets by 38 points in the first two meetings this season. He scored 29 points in Orlando’s 116-101 home win on Oct. 25 and then matched it in Friday’s 123-100 win when the Magic outscored Brooklyn 75-54 over the final 27 minutes.
Wagner scored 17 points in the second half of the first meeting and on Friday had 21 by halftime before hitting four more baskets to cap a 12-for-20 showing — the ninth time this season he made at least 50 percent from the field.
“He’s our go-to guy,” Orlando guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said after hitting four 3-pointers and adding 19 points. “He gets us going on the offensive end. We’re playing through him. He’s stepped up and it’s showing.
“Every game, the ball is in his hands to make plays, to make shots. He’s really doing what he’s supposed to do, I would say.”
Wagner is averaging a career-high 23.6 points, and his scoring average has gone up every season since Orlando picked him eighth overall in the 2021 NBA Draft out of Michigan. After averaging 15.2 as a rookie, he increased it to 18.6 in 2022-23 and then 19.7 last season to help Orlando win 47 games.
The Magic are also 11-5 since losing Banchero to an oblique injury, and Wagner is averaging 25.4 points on 46.6 percent shooting in those games. Wagner also has scored 25 points or more eight times during Orlando’s current 11-1 surge, including a 37-point outing against the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 21.
Brooklyn is 3-10 against Eastern Conference opponents so far and has particularly struggled handling the ball against the Magic, who scored 59 points off 39 turnovers in the first two encounters.
The Nets returned home from a 3-1 road trip that featured wins over the Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors but took their second-most lopsided loss under first-year coach Jordi Fernandez against the Magic on Friday.
“We were a step slow with our physicality, a step slow with our rotations and our communication and you pay for it,” Fernandez said.
The Nets tied their season high for turnovers (20) and also took a season-low 29 3s, though they made 14. Brooklyn also got 58 points from its reserves as its starting lineup was missing Dorian Finney-Smith (ankle) and Dennis Schroder (personal) along with Cam Thomas (hamstring).
“He’s very important to how we play and to our team,” forward Jalen Wilson said of Schroder. “Even if he’s not here, we still have to step up and have his back, but Dennis is someone that we always lean on.”
The absences forced the Nets to start a different starting lineup for the sixth straight game. The group of Wilson, Cameron Johnson, Ziaire Williams, Tyrese Martin and Ben Simmons combined to score 42 points.
–Field Level Media
