Magic player close to reaching boiling point amid locker room turmoil

The Orlando Magic’s locker room doesn’t seem to be the happiest place on earth.

The Magic have gone through a lot in the 2025-26 NBA season, and while they survived the regular season and made it to the NBA Play-In Tournament, the relationship between head coach Jamahl Mosley and a key player appears to be beyond repair.

According to Raheem Palmer of The Ringer, “the Magic are dealing with major turmoil in their locker room,” with a star player on the verge of forcing a trade out of Orlando if Mosley gets retained.

Palmer did not name the player, but a rift between Mosley and Paolo Banchero has been an underlying narrative throughout the season.

Although Orlando won 45 games, the Magic were supposed to be better than a team fighting for a ticket to the playoffs proper, considering the talent on their roster. 

A feuding player and a head coach aren’t out of the ordinary in the NBA, but between a star player and a coach, it’s the latter who’s always going to be the more expendable.

Still, Mosley can cool his seat with the Magic with a deep run in the playoffs. That is going to be much easier said than done, however. Should they make it past the play-in, they will either face the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference Detroit Pistons, or the No. 2 seed Boston Celtics in the first round.