Wednesday's 94-84 Summer League loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers was a mixed bag for the Orlando Magic. The Magic starters still haven't found their groove as a unit and settled for too many threes which led to transition defense issues. The game unraveled in the third quarter where they were outscored 25-13. Cavs 3rd overall pick Evan Mobley (14 pts, 7 reb, 6 ast) showcased his wide-ranging skill set for Cleveland while second year players Isaac Okoro (16 pts, 5 reb, 3 ast) and Lamar Stevens (13 pts, 7 reb) gave the Magic trouble.
Cole Anthony only shot 2-10 after a 1-9 outing in the first game but as always, continued to encourage his teammates. You would hope to see a good game from him before Summer League ends but it isn't the end of the world.
The good news is that Jalen Suggs backed up his excellent debut with another strong performance. He looked to facilitate more but filled out the stat sheet and made several highlight plays (Suggs 16 pts 6-13 FG, 8 reb, 5 ast, 1 stl, 3 TO). At one point Suggs did bump a referee to demonstrate how he thought he was fouled and picked up a technical which kind of surprised me. He plays the game at such an intense level of competitiveness but one hopes he doesn't let things get under his skin that will effect his game.
RJ Hampton shot 3-6 from beyond the arc which is a positive takeaway and Franz Wagner showed signs with a few nice takes to the hoop and knocked down a three. Iggy Brazdeikis was just signed to a two-way contract which I thought was a good move and he contributed 9 points in 14 minutes. Former Texas A&M standout DJ Hogg was also a bright spot for the Magic, scoring 15 points in 19 minutes including 6 boards and 3 threes. However, the Janis Timma bandwagon slowed down a touch after a rough night from the field (2-8 3pt FG.) You wonder who could potentially win a final roster spot. Timma and Hogg are two guys that could be worth considering. The next Orlando Magic Summer League game is Thursday, August 12th against the Boston Celtics at 7pm.
Photo: Getty Images