The Magic seemed to be trying to instigate and then flop on the retaliation. Suggs shoulder checked Tobias and then took a dive when Tobias banged him back. Paolo started jawing in Stew’s face then flailed backwards when they were jockeying for position on the next play knowing with Stew’s reputation he’d get a call.
I was watching the game with Magic announcers. Immediately when Suggs was down they said Harris was getting kicked out and acted shocked when it didn’t happen.
The Magic definitely play “right at the line”
At this point I see more of them than anyone, they are a very physical team
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Was at the game last night. The worst officiated NBA game I’ve seen in a while. Magic are a dirty team, plain and simple and their fanbase buys into it.
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Can we get Chris Collins to comment on the antics of his fellow Dukie?
I just hope we are all aware of the irony of this coming from any Detroit fan (from the 80s to the 00s).
But yes, Suggs toes the line night in and night out without a doubt.
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Due to my affinity for the Wagner brothers (I also like Wendell Carter and John Isaac) and my subscription to League Pass, I see a lot of Magic basketball, they’re the team I definitely watch most.
There is no team that strikes me as “dirty” in this league, honestly, in terms of trying to cause harm, overly-physical fouls, etc. I do think the Magic are one of if not the most physical teams in the league (if we want to point to a guy on that roster who is dirty, in full honestly, the first guy I’d point to is out own Moritz). They definitely grab, they definitely push and pull, they also get into the ball more than basically any team outside OKC.
As @beanman alludes to above - they play a style of ball that nobody would have noticed as recently as ten years ago. In a league where everyone whines that “everyone plays the same” (I think it’s BS, but it’s a very common complaint), the Magic definitely play their own way. Suggs is a 6’5", 215 pound point guard with limited offensive gifts - yeah, he’s going to play physically. Interestingly, the Magic are the only team that fouls a ton (3rd worst in FT rate allowed) and are good at defense - basically every other team in that strata of fouling is a terrible defense.
It was more the flopping that followed the physical play that was my gripe. Didn’t find them particularly dirty ir even excessively physical.
Sure. Flopping is pretty endemic in all levels of hoops at this point, tbh. I know we lionize Cade for not flopping ever (and I understand why) but if we want him to be All-NBA…start flopping young man!
Anyway, (and this is not me making a point, just throwing it out there):
Pistons are tied for 17th in net rating (-0.9) with the Suns, 0.1 points away from the Magic. They are 8th in the East (again, 0.1 away from 7th, the Magic). There was a weird thing in terms of points distribution (close losses!) where they were actually better in net rating in November on a worse record then they were in December (on a better net rating). But, their win-streak has coincided with a jump in net rating this time - from -1.9 three weeks ago today to -0.9 (their rank within the league remains pretty similar throughout all this). I don’t think its nuts to think that with Ivey, this is a + net rating club.
They are 17th in offense (eFG% is now their strongest attribute, 14th, still poor in foul rate and turnovers)
They are 13th in defense (rebounding by far their best attribute, 5th in the NBA).
The playoff simulators have them 8th right now, but not really meaningfully different from 7th and 6th (Heat, Magic respectively).
Obviously we know things the computers do not (the Heat have the Jimmy Butler problem, the Magic have been very injured and should (but I’m not sure) get better.
If I had to guess, I’d say they finish 7th, the top play-in seed.
(fun stat: Ausar Thompson’s presence swings the defensive performance by 0.2 ppp alone)
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Ansar’s return has helped mitigate the loss of Ivey. Defense for Offense (although Ausar finds ways to contribute here and there on offense.) But, I can see the Pistons hitting a real bad stretch unless they get another player that can create plays for others. The offense falls off a cliff when Cade goes to the bench. And if he has an off night, it’s a guaranteed loss.
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Yeah, going into the year with only 2 guys who can make a play for others was problematic, even moreso when 1 of them misses over half the year. Everyone was in on the “pros” they added in Hardaway, Harris, Beasley, and I think they’re getting what they could expect from Hardaway and Beasley (ok, lots more than they could have expexted from Beasley) at least…but they really needed to find a liiiiitle passing for that money from one of those slots.
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The short term solution is to have Ausar be the playmaker on the second unit. If only to see what he can do. But they are still slowly ticking up his minutes.
There’s lots of talk (wishing, really) on the Pistons Forum about the Pistons going after José Alvarado. He’s good enough with the ball, can shoot, and it a pest on defense. Plus, there’s the Langdon connection.
New Orleans is a team going nowhere but I am not sure that equates to them trading him.
I would love Sexton, who liked playing for JB. He only has two years on his contract. I bet Utah would want a first round pick for him though. Suggestions I’ve heard: Grayson Allen, Brogdon, Lonzo Ball, Bruce Brown, Coby White. I would add Kevin Huerter.
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I don’t want Grayson Allen anywhere near a team that I’m rooting for. Everyone else has possibilities, though Huerter seems redundant.
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White probably has a pricetag hardest to hit in terms of draft comp. I’d think guys like Ball and Brogdon would be relatively easy as they’re somewhat pricey and on teams going nowhere - the clubs may be willing to just have the savings for minimal draft compensation. Both fit the bill of what the Pistons want in theory (a guy who can lead a second unit AND play next to Cade) but both carry pretty significant injury concerns.
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They really are missing another ballhandler. Sasser is a combo guard who is more of a smallish SG than a PG tbh. That’s why I was kind of hoping they might find a way to swing a moderate trade for Lonzo Ball. He solves this issue and can back up both Cade/Ivey should they choose to re-sign him. Honestly, I think Langdon should stay pat and let the young core develop unless there’s a trade offer that he can’t refuse.
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What a soap opera
I didn’t watch enough of the Pistons when they were performing poorly to give a strong take, but I wonder if Jaden’s defense was bad enough that giving Ausar major minutes means him being out is a net positive.
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