The Hornets have now missed the playoffs for 10 straight seasons.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. β Paolo Banchero scored 25 points as the Orlando Magic crushed the Charlotte HornetsΒ 121-90 on Friday to win the NBA Eastern Conference play-in tournament and reach the postseason.
Orlando led by 31 points at halftime and outdueled Charlotte from start to finish. The Magic converted 50% of their shots from the field, compared to 34% by the Hornets. Charlotte’s reliance on 3-point shooting proved costly, with the team only hitting 12 of 45 from beyond the arc.Β
Turnovers were another major factor. The Hornets committed 20 turnovers and surrendered 26 points.Β
“Not our best effort, but I do like that we continued to fight and grind throughout the game,” Hornets head coach Charles Lee said after the game. “I hope this fuels us this offseason.”
Banchero led the Magic with 25 points and hit 9 of 17 attempts. Franz Wagner had 18 points, and Wendell Carter Jr. had 16 points.
LaMelo Ball led Charlotte with 23 points on 7 of 17 shooting. Miles Bridges had 12 points. Brandon Miller had 14 points. Rookie Kon Kneuppel had 11 points on 3 of 10 shooting.
“We’ll come back with a mindset next year remembering this game, losing by [31 points], and play as hard as we can,” Miller said.
The loss keeps the Hornets out of the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season, the longest active streak in the NBA. Friday’s loss and Tuesday’s play-in win were the first postseason action of any kind for the Hornets since 2022.
Charlotte buzzed to the ninth seed with a 44-38 record after a dramatic turnaround that began in January. The Hornets were 12 games under (.500) on Jan. 21 but won 28 of their final 38 games to reach the play-in. The run included a nine-game winning streak, the second longest in franchise history.
Orlando, meanwhile, hovered around (.500) the whole season and finished one game ahead of the Hornets to take the eighth seed. That seeding allowed the Magic to host Friday’s play-in game.
The Magic will face the top-seeded Detroit Pistons in the 1st Round of the NBA’s Eastern Conference playoffs.