The Orlando Magic are in their first postseason since 2020 and were largely dominated in a Game 1 Eastern Conference first-round loss in Cleveland over the weekend. The Magic have now lost five straight playoff games by double digits. Will that change Monday? The Cavs are solid favorites on the NBA odds

2024 NBA Playoffs Expert Analysis Orlando vs Cleveland | MyBookie NBA

How to Bet Magic at Cavaliers NBA Odds & TV Info

When: Monday, 7 PM ET
Where: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
TV: NBA TV
Stream: NBA.com, NBA TV app
Radio: Tunein.com
NBA Odds: Cavs -1.5 (total 52.5)

Why Bet on Orlando Magic?

The Magic were 18-23 on the road during the regular season and didn’t put up too much of a fight in Game 1 of this series, falling 97-83 in Cleveland on Saturday. Former No. 1 overall pick and 2023 NBA Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero made his playoff debut in the loss and was solid with 24 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 41 minutes.

In addition to shooting 2-of-7 from three, Banchero was just 4-of-8 from the foul line. Add in a career-high nine turnovers (Orlando had 12 as a team), and this was nowhere near Paolo’s best effort. Banchero was Orlando’s most reliable scoring weapon during the regular season and posted 54 appearances with 20 or more points.

Fellow forward Franz Wagner had 18 points, seven boards, three assists and three blocks without a single turnover in 38 minutes. He has now scored 18 or more points in six of his last seven appearances dating back to the regular season. Jonathan Isaac got a surprise start in Game 1 as it was only his second start of the season. He finished with 10 points and five rebounds in 29 minutes. Behind him, reserves Wendell Carter Jr. (three points, two rebounds) and Moritz Wagner (10 points, five rebounds) combined to play 28 minutes. We might see Carter take his starting spot back in Game 2.

As a team, the Magic shot 32.6 percent from the field while making just 21.6 percent of their 3-point attempts in arguably their worst offensive games of the season. The team also struggled at the charity stripe, making just 19 of 30 free throws. Starting guard Gary Harris was scoreless in 33 minutes, going 0-for-6 from the field.

“Cleveland does a great job of packing the paint and they do a great job of flying at shots, but a big portion of this is us continuing to be willing to step into those shots with competence, which our team will continue to do,” coach Jamahal Mosley said postgame. “Again, it’s the little things in this game, because if you look at the statute, there’s a lot of similar things going through it. But now it’s got to be the little things that take over, it’s making your free throws, it’s coming up with the 50/50 balls in these situations.”

Orlando is 4-3 vs. Cleveland in the playoffs (4-2 in 2009 Eastern Conference Finals; 0-1 in 2024 First Round). The Magic are 10-17 all-time in Game 2’s during their playoff history (10-5 at home, 0-11 on the road, 0-1 at Disney). The Magic’s only series win after losing Game 1 in franchise history was the 2009 First Round vs. Philadelphia, where they beat the Sixers, 4-2.

Why Bet on Cleveland Cavaliers?

The Cavaliers opened Game 1 with an 8-2 run and never trailed, leading by as many as 20 points during the second half. In a span of just 33 seconds, Cavs big man Evan Mobley changed the trajectory of Game 1 as he made two 3-pointers on successive possessions in the first quarter.

It changed the way Orlando guarded. Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff counted three coverages the Magic employed after Mobley made those early 3s. It appeared to give Bickerstaff more confidence to roll with his best defensive lineups in a series predicated on defense, since Mobley and Jarrett Allen closed out the game’s final 5 1/2 minutes on the floor together. Mobley finished with 16 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks. He and Allen combined for 29 rebounds.

They played 23 minutes side by side in Game 1, which is about six more minutes than they averaged during the regular season. The result was an elite defensive rating of 87.8. Bickerstaff often had to stagger his two best post players in the regular season because of spacing issues, but he found a set where he could keep them on the floor together. The 18 rebounds were a playoff career-high for Allen, whose production dropped significantly throughout Cleveland’s five-game loss to the Knicks in the first round last spring.

“He’s the guy,” Bickerstaff said of Mobley. “If he’s making those shots, you can’t shift in and protect the paint as much as you want to because you’re just giving him wide-open looks.”

Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with 30 points. Making their first playoff appearance in four years, the Magic had no answer for Mitchell. He has now opened his last four playoff series by scoring 30 points or more. Mitchell was a handful for the Magic in the three regular-season meetings, averaging 27.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game while shooting 44.3% from the field and 81.8% from the foul line.

Point guard Darius Garland had 14 points and eight assists in 32 minutes. Garland experienced an injury scare early in the third quarter of Saturday’s series opener, as he needed to exit to receive treatment on his lower back but was able to return. Caris LeVert would be of added importance to the Cavaliers if Garland’s back flares up before Game 2. LeVert, who replaced Garland early in the third quarter, played 20 minutes on Saturday, finishing with five points, four rebounds, and two assists.

The Cavs held the Magic to 15 points on 5-for-20 (.250) shooting from the field in the 2nd quarter in Saturday’s win. Cleveland held its opponents to 15 or fewer points in a quarter five times during the regular season. The Wine & Gold won the rebound battle 54-40 (+14) and outscored Orlando in the paint 48-36 (+12).

Orlando’s 83 points were the fewest points allowed by the Cavs in a playoff game since allowing 79 points on May 27, 2018 at Boston. Cleveland held its opponents under 90 points twice during the regular season.

Magic vs Cavaliers Expert Prediction

Cavaliers 104, Magic 99

Entering the final weekend of the NBA regular season, the Cleveland Cavaliers are locked into the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference and will open the playoffs next weekend at home against the No. 5 New York Knicks. Thus, the Cavs have nothing to play for in their final few regular-season games and are resting every good player they have tonight in Orlando. That has seen the spread shift wildly from Cleveland -4 to Orlando -8 on the NBA odds.

NBA News: Playoff-Bound Cavaliers Resting Every Key Player Thursday At Magic

When: April 6 at 7:00 pm ET
Where: Amway Center
TV / Streaming: NBA League Pass, Bally OH & FL

Cavs All-Star Donovan Mitchell has scored at least 40 points in four straight games, the first to do so since James Harden in 2018-19, but he’ll take a seat Thursday, along with Jarrett Allen (groin), Darius Garland (leg), Evan Mobley (rest), Isaac Okoro (knee) and Caris LeVert (knee). Good look betting player props on Cleveland tonight as no player in the starting lineup – probably Ricky Rubio, Danny Green, Lamar Stevens, Dean Wade and Robin Lopez, even averages 6.0 points per game.

Cleveland is playing Orlando for the fourth and final time this season and has won 5 of their last 6 games against the Magic. Cleveland’s 117-113 win over Orlando on Tuesday night marked their first win in Orlando since Jan. 6, 2018. The win also marked the Cavs 50th win of the season, the 12th time in franchise history with 50+ wins and their most wins in a season since 2017-18 (50-32). Cleveland has increased its win total by 6 from last season (44-38 in 2021-22). The Cavs have improved their record in each of the last four seasons.

Mitchell had 43 points, five rebounds and four assists in Tuesday’s win. Midway through the fourth quarter, Mitchell hit a three-pointer to give the Cavaliers a 108-99 lead. The Magic would respond with a 10-0 run, capped off by a layup from Paolo Banchero to give Orlando a 109-108 edge with 3:53 left. However, Cleveland would answer right back with a 7-0 spurt and hold on for the victory.

It was Mitchell’s 13th game this season with at least 40 points, marking the 2nd-most 40-point games all-time for an NBA player’s first season with a new team, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain (32 in 1959-60 with Philadelphia).

Garland had his 18th double-double of the year with 16 points and 10 assists. Garland is shooting a career-best .410 from deep this season and also ranks 8th in the NBA in assists per game (7.8 APG). He is on pace to become the 4th Cavalier aged 23 or younger to have back-to-back seasons averaging 20.0+ PPG (LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Collin Sexton).

The Cavs are averaging 112.4 PPG, the second-highest in franchise history, behind only the 1979-80 season (114.1 PPG). Good luck getting to that number tonight with all those guys out. Cleveland has a team points total of 105.5 tonight.

The Magic will miss the NBA playoffs yet again but are much improved at 34-45 and can finish with a winning record at home (21-20) with a victory here in their home finale. Orlando has recorded 12 more victories than last season, with three games remaining, It is the largest win improvement in the Eastern Conference and third-largest in the NBA.

The Magic also have the lock NBA Rookie of the Year in Paolo Banchero. He had 20 points and 10 rebounds in Tuesday’s loss. The No. 1 overall pick out of Duke has led (or tied) the team in scoring 30 times, in rebounding 21 times and in assists 16 times. Banchero was named the NBA’s Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for December 2022, January 2023 and February 2023. He also became only the second player in team history to win the honor in three consecutive months, joining Shaquille O’Neal, who did it four straight times.

Orlando is averaging 112.0 ppg. (8,848 points) this season, has scored 100+ points 71 times (32-39 record), 110+ points 45 times (27-18 record), 120+ points 15 times (9-6 record) and 130+ points three times (3-0 record). The team is shooting .473 (3,221-6,814) from the floor this season and shot 50 percent-or-better 26 times (18-8 record), including a season-high .592 (42-71) on Dec. 9 vs. Toronto. Orlando head coach Jamahl Mosley spent four seasons (2010-14) as an assistant with Cleveland.