After limping to a 113-111 win against the Mavericks late Wednesday night, the New York Knicks (9-5) are in line for an evening bash with the Orlando Magic (9-7), one of the most formidable opponents the Eastern Conference has to offer.
New York finally got off the schneid against Dallas, picking up their first road victory of the season. While it certainly wasn’t pretty at times, it was the heroics of Landry Shamet (and an extremely favorable offensive foul call at the end of regulation) that catapulted the Knicks to a W.
It was a much-needed win for New York, struggling to win away from home and in the middle of a five-game road trip. And there may not have been a more encouraging sign than Jalen Brunson taking the floor after missing a couple of games with (another) ankle sprain. Brunson, of course, did Brunson things in his first game back, scoring 28 points and dishing out 5 assists. How lucky are we?
Next up? The Magic, who have quietly been figuring things out down in Florida. Winners of 8 of their last 11 games, there was a lot of buzz surrounding the team heading into this season. After trading for Desmond Bane and strengthening the backend of their rotation, the hype is finally starting to come to fruition.
Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero have been a tad below their level of play from last season, and while they’ve picked it up lately, it hasn’t mattered because help has been right behind them. Desmond Bane, Jalen Suggs, and Wendell Carter Jr. have all been pulling their weight, providing a scoring punch behind their main guys, and early-season jumps from Tristan Da Silva and Anthony Black give Orlando a deep team that can beat you with a lot of different weapons.
We’ve already seen firsthand how tough this Orlando team can be. On November 12th, just 10 short days ago, the Magic walked into MSG and beat the Knicks, 124-107, giving them their first home loss of the year. Franz had 28. Bane had 22. New York got crushed on the glass. Not good.
We’ll see if they can right their wrongs this time around, this time down at the Kia Center. 5:00 PM tonight. Be there.
Tonight’s game will come down to whether or not the Knicks can outfight Orlando. No finesse needed.
This time around, OG Anunoby is sidelined, but the Magic are missing Paolo Banchero, sidelined with a groin injury. If the Knicks had looked stronger on the road, I’d go with them, but a toss-up with the Magic at home makes me lean in their favor, especially with the recent form they’ve been displaying. I’d say Magic by two possessions, when it’s all said and done.
Date: Saturday, November 22, 2025Time: 5:00 PM ETPlace: Kia Center, Orlando, FLTV: MSG Network
Follow: [@ptknicksblog](https://twitter.com/ptknicksblog) and [bsky](https://bsky.app/profile/postingandtoasting.bsky.social)