The Orlando Magic found themselves in a hotly-contested matchup against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night, and in the end, Orlando prevailed. It may have taken some magical moments, with none of them being more especially noteworthy than a ridiculously impossible made basket from Jalen Suggs off of a PJ Washington deflection. But Wendell Carter Jr. tried his best to one-up his teammate by giving Orlando the victory with a memorable poster jam.
With the Magic putting up a valiant defensive stand with less than 10 seconds to go, they went out in semi-transition, refusing to call timeout to let the Mavericks set defensively. Suggs pushed the pace against Klay Thompson and got into two-man action with Carter. The Mavs then blitzed Suggs, freeing up Carter as the roll man. Every Mavs defender was late, including Cooper Flagg, who tried to reject Carter's slam — only to be put in a poster in the end.
The Magic ended up taking a 115-114 victory over the Mavericks thanks to Carter's dunk, as Dallas could not retaliate with a game-winner of their own.
Via Magic Film Room on X (formerly Twitter):
Wendell Carter Jr lead taking clutch dunk, great pass by Jalen Suggs pic.twitter.com/aQEnWm34tR
— The Magic Way (@MagicFilmRoom) March 6, 2026
Magic breathing down the 76ers' neck for the sixth spot in the East
The Magic have been ravaged by injury problems this season, with Suggs missing his fair share of games and Franz Wagner still out indefinitely with ankle troubles. Even then, Orlando remains in striking distance for the sixth and final outright playoff spot in the East, as this latest win over the Mavs brings them to 33-28 on the season, or half a game back of the Philadelphia 76ers.
The competition for that sixth spot is about to be even hotter. The Charlotte Hornets are destroying every team that comes their way, the Atlanta Hawks are hitting their stride, and the Miami Heat can always be counted on to compete until the very end.
