NBA Power Rankings: Where Does Magic Land After Winless Start?

The Orlando Magic are 0-3, but each loss so far has been tight. Where does that place them in this week's power rankings?

Jeremy Brener | Oct 24, 2022

NBA Power Rankings: Where Does Magic Land After Winless Start? /

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Orlando Magic

ORLANDO - The Orlando Magic is still looking for its first win of the year after three unsuccessful tries in the first week of the season.

All three losses the Magic has been involved in could have been wins if a few things went the other way.

However, a loss is still a loss ... and it's prompted The Athletic to slot the Magic in at No. 29 in this week's power rankings, with the winless Houston Rockets as the only team beneath them.

"Everybody is impressed with the No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero," The Athletic writes. "The Orlando Magic franchise player is physically imposing, and he’s making NBA veterans look small in stature. He even had the Celtics in shambles at times.

"Banchero is such a matchup nightmare, and it’ll be interesting to see how the ecosystem around him grows. Franz Wagner looks comfortable attacking and finding spots. The team is going to need to help space the floor to give him room to operate, but if not, he’ll figure out how to make being a bully work for him."

The Magic will be tested tremendously in the first stretch of the season with an excess of road games against strong Eastern Conference teams and a couple Western Conference contenders. If Orlando can string a few wins together in the early part of the year, it can dramatically change the team's outlook and perception. But for now, it is still the team that is tanking for another top pick to pair with Paolo Banchero.

The Magic will attempt to grab that first win tonight when the team travels to Madison Square Garden to face the New York Knicks. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on NBA TV.

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Published Oct 24, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.