When the Magic beat the Hornets by 16 points on Oct. 30 at Spectrum Center, the victory marked a key turning point for Jamahl Mosley‘s squad early in the season.
Orlando had lost four in a row when it went 1-4 to start the 2025-26 campaign, one that came with high expectations both internally and externally.
The Magic used their 123-107 victory at Charlotte as a springboard to win 11 of their next 15 games and rise in the Eastern Conference standings entering the month of December.
As December nears its end, Orlando faces Charlotte again, but this time at Kia Center as the team searches for another shot in the arm more than a third of the way through the season.
The Magic are 4-5 in their last nine games and have dealt with a plethora of injuries to key players.
For starters, budding All-Star forward Franz Wagner (left high ankle sprain) has missed the past six games while All-Defensive guard Jalen Suggs (left hip bruise) and second-year pro Tristan da Silva (right shoulder bruise) have missed the last four.
That’s not to mention reserve center Goga Bitadze (who missed the last game with a left knee strain) and veteran forward Jonathan Isaac (who’s dealt with a left hip bruise as of late).
Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley yells during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday in Portland, Oregon. (Howard Lao/Associated Press)
Orlando is also still waiting on the return of backup center Moe Wagner, who last weekend crossed the one-year anniversary of tearing the ACL in his left knee.
Making its way home, however, should help the overall morale of a beat-up squad.
The Magic (17-13) will play inside their home arena for the first time in more than two weeks (since Dec. 9) when they host the Hornets (10-20) on Friday. After playing the Timberwolves on Christmas, the Nuggets make their lone trip to Orlando the next night.
While they’ll be focused on the Hornets first, the Magic know firsthand there won’t be much room for error when Denver comes to town.
Last Thursday, Orlando by as many as 14 points on the road at Ball Arena before the Nuggets stormed back to capture an 11-point win over the Magic.
In fact, giving up double-digit leads became a problem of sorts for Orlando on its four-game West Coast road trip. Although the team was able to split the four contests to go 2-2 on the road, the Magic led by 14 at Denver, 19 at Utah and 17 at Portland.
AP Photo/Howard Lao
Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero, left, dribbles against the Portland Trail Blazers forward Kris Murray, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game on Tuesday in Portland, Oregon. (Howard Lao/Associated Press)
All three of those opponents fought back, with the Jazz even forcing overtime (before eventually falling by one in the extra period) and the Trail Blazers leading early in the fourth quarter (before losing by four in regulation).
Jumping out to a fast start at home against the Hornets and Nuggets will be crucial for the Magic, but so will finishing strong.
The team also won’t be home long.
After back-to-back games at Kia Center on Friday and Saturday, Orlando hits the road again for a three-game trip that opens Monday at Toronto and closes Jan. 2 at Chicago with a stop at Indiana in the middle.
Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com
Up next …
Magic vs. Hornets
When: 7 p.m., Friday, Kia Center
TV: FanDuel Sports Network Florida