Miami Heat guard Norman Powell drives to the basket as Orlando Magic forward Jamal Cain. Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Projecting Where Magic Will Finish in Standings

Originally posted on Orlando Magic on SI
By Jeremy Brener | Last updated Mar 15, 2026 4:00 PM ET

The Orlando Magic are rolling after grabbing their seventh straight win against the Miami Heat inside the Kaseya Center.

Following the latest win, some members of the Orlando Magic On SI staff projected where they think the team will finish in the Eastern Conference standings at the end of the season.

Ethan J. Skolnick

Well, here's the good news. It does not appear the Magic will fall back into the play-in, not with the way they've played defensively of late, and not with Toronto and Philadelphia both tilting down. And the Magic do hold the tiebreaker over the Heat. But the guess here is still that Orlando finishes behind Miami, only because the Heat should be healthier sooner (when exactly is Franz Wagner coming back?), and because Miami has a somewhat easier schedule.

Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Jeremy Brener

The Magic are rolling after winning seven straight games, which is their longest streak of the season. The team has finally figured out a rhythm, even though Franz Wagner and Anthony Black are on the sidelines at the moment with their respective injuries. Eventually, the two should come back before the playoffs, and that will help Orlando's depth improve.

With just 16 games left to go in the season, the Magic need to win around 10 of them in order to feel very comfortable about finishing outside of the play-in. While things have been good so far, the schedule does get tougher down the stretch, and there is reason to believe they could slip in the standings. However, if they can take things one game at a time and defend home court, they should be safe from having to play extra basketball.

Matt Hanifan

It’s tempting to be overly optimistic and stamp the Magic as a top-5 seed. But I will say they finish as a No. 6 seed, despite being injury-plagued. In fairness, so are the Philadelphia 76ers, who just lost Tyrese Maxey for the next few weeks; and the Raptors have zero size, dealing with myriad injuries of their own.

And the Magic own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Miami Heat. Maybe I’m drinking too much of the kool-aid, but the Magic control their own destiny for a top-6 seed, and I think that’s where they finish when it’s all said and done.

The Magic are back in action tomorrow when they take on the Atlanta Hawks. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET inside State Farm Arena. Fans can watch the game on FanDuel Sports Network or stream it on NBA League Pass.

This article first appeared on Orlando Magic on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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