NBA Playoffs First Round: Magic at Cavaliers Game 2 Preview
Cleveland Can Take Firm Control With Win
The first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs has been all chalk thus far with every favorite winning Game 1 and, for the most part, doing so comfortably. The same was true in the Magic-Cavaliers series, in which heavily favored Cleveland cruised to a 97-83 win on Saturday afternoon to go up 1-0.
Donovan Mitchell led the way with 30 points as the Magic shot under 33 percent from the field. The Magic vs Cavaliers game odds expect Game 2 to go a lot like Game 1, as Cleveland is favored by 5.5 points and is -215 on the moneyline (compared to Orlando at +178). The total is a low 202.5 points after the under easily hit on Saturday.
It’s always said that playoff series do not begin until a home team loses, but if the Magic go down 0-2, it’s going to be extremely difficult for them to come back. Orlando just doesn’t have the offensive firepower to easily roll off four wins in five NBA games.
They really need to steal one on the road to get the Cavaliers on their heels as the series heads to Orlando for Games 3 and 4. The NBA playoffs bracket isn’t kind to big underdogs that don’t get one of the first two games of the series.
The Magic are certainly not out of this series, but their performance in Game 1 left a lot to be desired. Other than Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, they just couldn’t get much going on offense against a stout Cavaliers defense.
Orlando prides itself on its depth and that depth didn’t show up on Saturday afternoon. If they’re going to even things up on Monday night, the Magic will need a lot more from guys like Jalen Suggs and Gary Harris.
Magic vs Cavaliers 
Day/Time:
Location: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse; Cleveland, Ohio
Records: Magic (0-1)/Cavaliers (1-0)
Shooting Continues To Be An Issue
The Magic are never going to be confused with a sharp-shooting team, but they have to get at least something going from the outside in Game 2. Orlando was a brutal 8-for-37 from three-point range in Game 1. Suggs was 1-for-7 from distance, and the bench was a collective 1-for-8.
Orlando made the fewest threes in the NBA during the regular season and doesn’t shoot at a high percentage, making comebacks very hard. The Magic vs Cavaliers game odds incorporate that.
So, Orlando can’t really play from behind because the Magic don’t have the ability to make up deficits quickly. They went down from the jump on Saturday and trailed for the entirety of the game.
Of course, every team would rather play from ahead, but at least teams with more dynamic scoring and shooting threats can roll off a 10-0 run, for example, to get right back in a game. The Magic can only do that in limited circumstances, as evidenced by the NBA betting lines.
Orlando has to get easier looks on offense and needs to knock down the open shots it does get. Sometimes, playoff basketball gets complicated when it comes down to a tactical battle between coaches or star players doing star player things.
Other times, it’s as simple as one team just not being able to score. The Cavaliers didn’t exactly light things up — they were 8-of-30 from three and committed 17 turnovers — but they did enough.
Cavaliers Need To Keep Balance
While it’s easier to win when your best NBA player drops a 30-piece on 21 shots like Mitchell did, the Cavaliers were able to dispatch Orlando without much of a sweat because the entire Cleveland starting lineup—save for Max Strus—played great.
Evan Mobley had 16 points and 11 rebounds with three blocks, Jarrett Allen posted a 16-point and 18-rebound double-double, and Darius Garland added 14 points and eight assists. No wonder the Cavaliers easily covered the Magic vs Cavaliers game odds of a 4.5 point spread in winning by 14.
Orlando-Cleveland is one of three NBA games today, all of which feature home teams up 1-0 in their series that are comfortable favorites. The Cavaliers will always go only as far as Mitchell — their best player — takes them but they can seriously make some noise in the playoffs if they continue to get such strong play from their supporting cast.
Mobley and Allen are big difference-makers on defense, especially at the rim, so Cleveland’s ability to get elite defense from them and also score just makes things so much tougher for Orlando.
Garland and Strus are also x-factors because they have microwave scoring ability that can quickly bury a offense-starved NBA team like the Magic. If Cleveland gets big scoring from either of those guys, to go along with what Mitchell usually provides, then Orlando could be looking at a big 2-0 series hole.
That’s not even to mention bench guys like Caris LeVert and Georges Niang, who didn’t do much in Game 1 but have the ability to make shots and lighten some of the offensive load from the Cavaliers’ stars.
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