Magic Fall Flat in London as Grizzlies Get Boost from Morant’s Return
The Orlando Magic’s trip across the Atlantic ended on a sour note Sunday, as they were overwhelmed early and never recovered in a 126-109 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies at London’s O2 Arena. The game, broadcast globally on Amazon Prime Video, saw the Magic stumble out of the gate-and this time, there was no comeback magic to save them.
In the first 12 minutes, Orlando couldn’t buy a bucket from deep, missing all seven of its three-point attempts. Meanwhile, Memphis came out firing, knocking down six of their first 11 shots from beyond the arc. Combine that with three early turnovers, and the Magic were quickly buried under a deficit that ballooned to 33 points in the first half.
It was a far cry from their previous meeting just days earlier in Berlin, where the Magic erased a 20-point hole to stun the Grizzlies. But this time, the comeback never came. The lead never dipped below 15, and the Magic never looked like they had control of the game.
So what changed?
For starters, Ja Morant was back-and he made sure everyone knew it. After missing six games, the Grizzlies’ star guard returned to the lineup and immediately reminded everyone why he’s one of the most electric players in the league. Morant dropped 24 points and pulled down 13 rebounds in just 28 minutes, slicing through Orlando’s defense with his trademark speed and relentless energy.
“He creates so much for their team off the dribble with his talent, so you can’t really game-plan for that,” said Magic forward Paolo Banchero. “They played the same style-fast-paced-but they had probably their best player out there today.”
Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley echoed that sentiment: “His speed, his intensity, his energy level when he gets on the court, he’s a tough guard. He’s a lightning bolt getting downhill.”
Orlando, on the other hand, was missing some key pieces. Backup center Moe Wagner, just two games into his return from a long rehab following a torn ACL, was sidelined for injury management.
Jalen Suggs also remained out with a right knee MCL bruise, missing his seventh straight game. Without two of their top energy guys, the Magic looked flat-especially early.
And that’s becoming a troubling trend.
Across both games against Memphis, Orlando was outscored 79-46 in the first quarters. That kind of slow start puts any team in a hole, and while they managed to dig out of it in Germany, there was no such luck in London.
“Both games we started down big,” Banchero said. “Germany, we came back; [Sunday] we didn’t. So not something we want to continue, going down early.”
The Magic flew home Monday and will get a brief reset before returning to the practice floor on Wednesday. They’ll host the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday at Kia Center, kicking off a stretch of games that could define their season.
Despite the loss, the Magic didn’t walk away empty-handed from their international trip. They split the two-game set with Memphis and remain firmly in the thick of the Eastern Conference race. At 23-19, Orlando sits just one game behind the fourth-seeded Raptors and two games behind the third-place Knicks.
Still, the team knows it hasn’t been playing its best basketball. Over their last 10 games, they’re 5-5-a record that reflects inconsistency more than anything else.
“There’s things we’re going to have to correct and clean up - that’s with every game whether you win or lose,” Mosley said. “Our ability to start a little stronger, learn a little faster and have a sense of urgency to start the game is something that was trending. So we’ve got to make sure we clean that up.”
The slow starts have been an issue, but earlier in the season, it was late-game execution that cost them. Now, with the season’s second half looming, the Magic are looking to tighten up both ends of the timeline. And despite the recent bumps, the belief in the locker room hasn’t wavered.
“The group is together,” Banchero said. “We all trust each other and have each other’s backs.
Heading into this back half, we need to find a way to string some consistent basketball together and get wins. Hopefully we can go on a streak here because we’re right in the middle of the standings.
That could do a lot for us.”
He’s not wrong. The East is tight, and a hot stretch could vault the Magic into a top-four seed-and with it, homecourt advantage in the first round. But Banchero made it clear: being in the playoff mix isn’t enough.
“I know we’re in the playoffs right now, but you can’t be complacent with that,” he said. “You’ve got to try to fight for homecourt and get a top seed.”
The next stretch won’t be easy. Starting with Thursday’s matchup against Charlotte, the Magic will play every other day leading into the All-Star break.
No back-to-backs, but not much rest either. And with the trade deadline set for Feb. 5, there’s no shortage of urgency-on or off the court.
For now, though, the focus is internal. The Magic know they have the talent.
They know they’ve shown flashes of being a serious postseason threat. But as Banchero put it, talk is cheap.
“We’re talented enough to go all the way,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we’ve got to start playing better and we’ve got to go out there and win games.
We can’t just say it. We can’t just say we’re going to do this or we’re going to make it this far.
“We’ve been out the first round two straight years, so we have to go prove that we’re better than that and we can advance in the playoffs.”
Up next: Magic vs. Hornets, Thursday at Kia Center.