Franz Wagner on Orlando Magic's Success: 'We Keep Getting Better'

The Orlando Magic are on their longest win streak in 14 years, and Franz Wagner doesn't see any sign of the team slowing down.
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The Orlando Magic beat the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday night with a 132-117 victory.

Behind 30-point efforts from Franz Wagner and Cole Anthony, the Magic was able to extend their winning streak to seven games, the longest such streak since the 2010-11 season.

Orlando is now tied for the third-best record in the entire league and holds second place in the NBA Eastern Conference. Still a team on the rise, the rest of the NBA is holding their breath and wondering just how high the Magic’s ceiling is.

Franz Wagner (22) and his brother Moritz (21).
Franz Wagner (22) and his brother Moritz (21) / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

After the game, Wagner took to the podium to talk about the win streak, which has been the first real taste of NBA success he has had in three seasons in Orlando.

“Obviously want to keep it going,” he said. “Moe [Wagner] always says it starts with the work. All the words sound nice, but we want to keep it going and make sure we keep getting better as a group as the season continues to go on.”

The Magic is the fifth-youngest team in the league, so winning at this rate seems unsustainable, and it’s only inevitable that Orlando will fall back to Earth. Wagner disagrees with that.

“I think everybody in the building believes [they can win] and I think that’s how it starts for us, I think a little change in our mentality compared to the last two years,” he said. “When we walk in the building, we believe that we win that day. Like I said, that’s just the start, those are just words, we got to do the work in the game. But I think the last couple of weeks we’ve been doing a pretty solid job.”

The last few weeks have been good for Orlando. Since starting the season 4-4, the Magic has been on a tear. Starting on November 11 with a win against the Bucks, Orlando has been 8-1, beating Milwaukee, Denver, and Boston.

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Based on what fans have seen so far, there is not a team in the league that can beat Orlando in a seven-game series, and a deep playoff run could be in the cards. 


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Jonah Kubicek
JONAH KUBICEK

Jonah Kubicek has been writing about the NBA since 2021, covering the Pistons, Jazz, Spurs, Magic, Rockets, and Knicks. As a lifelong Spurs fan living in Michigan, he never misses an opportunity to bring up the 2005 NBA Finals (you should have guarded Horry!). He is a long-suffering Tigers fan and closely follows the NFL, although he never found an affinity for the Lions. Jonah graduated from Oakland University with a degree in History and spends his spare time playing tennis or reading. Follow Jonah on Twitter for updates on Tre Jones and other NBA news.