After Hornets Eliminated From Play-In, What’s Next For The Team?

Charlotte’s 2025-2026 season came to an end last Friday after the Magic used an all-out performance to handle them.

Orlando cruised to a 121-90 win after their defense played lights out – the Magic forced 14 first-half turnovers and scored 22 points off of those turnovers. Orlando scored 24 fast-break points, meaning that they didn’t miss chances to dominate offensively. Forward Paolo Banchero scored 25 points, totaled six assists and grabbed five rebounds to contribute to his team’s performance. The Magic went on a 26-6 run that stretched from the middle of the first quarter to the beginning of the second, burying Charlotte in a deep hole that they never climbed out of.

Their 31-point win marked the largest margin of victory in an NBA play-in game.

After acquiring Desmond Bane from the Grizzlies last offseason, Orlando hoped to be a contender in the Eastern Conference. This aspiration became a pipe-dream after Franz Wagner missed 48 games due to a severe left high ankle sprain. Friday’s win proved that Orlando was playing with a chip on their shoulder.

“When you play with a sense of desperation and urgency, when you know you’re either going home or extending your season, that’s what it looks like,” coach Jamahl Mosley said. “There are no second chances.”

Charlotte experienced quite the roller coaster season; they entered January at an 11-22 record, putting them 12th place in the Eastern Conference. A second-half surge propelled Charlotte to the tenth seed and a 44-38 record. The Hornets defeated the Heat in overtime in the nine-ten play-in game last Tuesday due to some late-game heroics. LaMelo Ball made the game-winning layup with 4.7 seconds left in overtime, while Miles Bridges sealed the win after blocking a layup from Davion Mitchell at the buzzer. Ball dropped 30 points and tallied ten assists, while Miles Bridges scored 28 points and grabbed nine rebounds.

The Magic will face the Pistons in Game One of their first round series on Sunday. In order for Orlando to make things interesting, they would need to have similar performances. “There’s a physicality to this game that’s going to be real,” Mosley said of both teams’ playing style. “There’s going to be a lot of aggression. There’s going to be a lot of physicality. It’s going to be a dogfight.”

Detroit finished 60-22 on the season and are looking for their first playoff series win since the 2007-2008 playoffs.