Paolo Banchero Reacts to Magic Blowing 3-1 Series Lead in NBA Playoff Loss to Cunningham, Pistons
The Orlando Magic fell in the first round of the playoffs for the third straight season on Sunday after falling 116-94 in Game 7 to the Detroit Pistons.
Orlando was up three games to one in the series and held a 24-point lead early in the third quarter of Game 6 but fell short.
After the game, Magic star forward Paolo Banchero was asked if he thought Orlando was good enough to reach another level in the playoffs.
"I mean I can't really answer that," Banchero said. "I want to say yes, but we haven't been out of the first round, so if you're going off the last three years, the answer is no. But the nice answer would be yes, but honestly speaking, I can't say that we're good enough to be in the Finals or the Eastern Finals, because the last three years, we've had the same result, so that's your answer."
Banchero gave it all he had in Game 7, posting 38 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
He averaged 26.3 points and 9.0 rebounds for the series in an exceptional performance.
Orlando looked great on paper going into this year after adding Desmond Bane via trade from the Memphis Grizzlies. However, this was an uneven year for the Magic, who went 45-37 and got the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Orlando won three of the first four games and looked ready to possibly close this one out, but the Pistons persevered and ultimately engineered the 3-1 comeback. Game 6 will forever sting after the Magic scored just 19 second-half points en route to a 93-79 loss.
In fairness to the Magic, they played the last three full games without forward Franz Wagner, who suffered a right calf strain in Game 4. Wagner averaged 20.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game during an injury-shortened season that lasted just 34 games.
He certainly could have made a difference. Still, Orlando has to wonder what might have been as the team underwent another early exit, leaving the team with numerous questions as the offseason now begins.
