We\u2019ve seen playoff collapses in many sports before. We\u2019ve also seen memorable stretches of offensive futility before, in basketball and in other sports. But we\u2019ve never seen anything quite like what we saw in Orlando, Fla., on Friday night.<\/p>\n
After taking a 24-point lead in the third quarter of Game 6 of their first-round series against the Detroit Pistons, the Orlando Magic seemed to be a lock to become the seventh No. 8 seed to upset a No. 1 seed since the playoffs expanded in 1984. Instead, they watched their offensive talent get snatched from them in a way that would make the Space Jam Monstars blush.<\/p>\n
Just how inept was Orlando\u2019s offense in the second half of what ended up being a 93-79 Pistons win that forced a Game 7 on Sunday? Here are some stats to put it in perspective.<\/p>\n
Twenty-three missed shots in a row<\/h2>\n
With four minutes and 14 seconds left in the third quarter, Anthony Black caught the ball in the left corner with no Pistons player in his ZIP code. He made the 3 to give the Magic a 70-54 lead.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s how the Magic\u2019s next 23 shots went:<\/p>\n
1. Paolo Banchero missed a 16-foot jumper.
2. Black missed a stepback 3.
3. Banchero missed a pull-up 3.
4. Paul Reed blocked Goga Bitadze\u2019s layup attempt.
5. Reed blocked Desmond Bane\u2019s driving layup.
6. Black missed a 2-for-1 pull-up 3.
7. Bane missed a step-back 3 at the end of the third quarter.
8. Tristan da Silva missed a 3.
9. Jamal Cain grabbed the offensive rebound but was blocked by Cade Cunningham.
10. Jalen Suggs drove by Cunningham but missed a righty layup.
11. Banchero\u2019s attempt to bank a pull-up jumper over Cunningham didn\u2019t hit the rim.
12. Reed blocked da Silva\u2019s cutting layup.
13. Banchero missed a pull-up over Jalen Duren.
14. Suggs missed a 3.
15. Bane missed a 3.
16. Bane missed a pull-up 3.
17. Suggs got the offensive rebound, Bane lollygagged in the backcourt and then missed an even longer pull-up 3, badly.
18. Bane missed an even longer 3.
19. Banchero got to his spot in the lane but front-rimmed a pull-up jumer.
20. Suggs missed a semi-open 3.
21. Ausar Thompson got an unbelievable block on Wendell Carter Jr.\u2019s dunk attempt.
22. Banchero missed an open corner 3.
23. Suggs air-balled a pull-up 3 \u2014 and that\u2019s being generous.<\/p>\n
Finally, the Pistons laid off and gave Banchero a straight-line drive for a dunk at the 2:24 mark of the fourth quarter to break the seal. It was Orlando\u2019s only made field goal of the quarter.<\/p>\n
That allowed the Magic to at least avoid tying the NBA record for most consecutive missed shots by a team (24), set by the Oklahoma City Thunder in a 2017 regular-season loss to the Washington Wizards. But the Magic had already blown past the playoff record \u2014 and, of course, lost their lead.<\/p>\n
In case you\u2019re curious, here\u2019s what 23 straight missed shots looks like on a shot chart.<\/p>\n
![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2026\/05\/01220055\/DET-vs-ORL-on-05_01_2026.png\")
<\/p>\n
Nineteen second-half points<\/h2>\n
It\u2019s hard to remember that the Magic\u2019s offense was really good in the first half, scoring 60 points on 56.1 percent shooting.<\/p>\n
The second half, on the other hand? Nineteen points on 4-of-37 shooting from the field, including 1-of-20 shooting in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
That is indeed the lowest-scoring playoff half in NBA history, and not by an insignificant margin. The previous record was 23 points, set by the 1998 Utah Jazz (against the Chicago Bulls) and matched by the 2000 Phoenix Suns (against the Los Angeles Lakers), the 2006 Cleveland Cavaliers (against the Detroit Pistons) and the 2013 Boston Celtics (against the New York Knicks). All four of those teams were on the road, by the way. Orlando was at home.<\/p>\n
Orlando\u2019s only consolation is that the 19 points in a half is not\u00a0<\/em>worse than the NBA regular-season record low. The then-New Orleans\/Oklahoma City Hornets scored just 16 points in the second half of a 2006 game against the LA Clippers. The Magic\u2019s previous low in any game, regular-season or playoff, was 20, achieved in a 2012 game against the Celtics.<\/p>\n The Magic\u2019s 9 points in the fourth quarter is not an NBA playoff record, at least. That mark belongs to the 1999 Portland Trail Blazers, who scored 5 points in a fourth quarter against the Jazz in 1999. But it is a Magic playoff low; the previous franchise record was 10, held by the 1997 team against the Miami Heat, the 1996 team against the Chicago Bulls and \u2014 wouldn\u2019t you know it \u2014 the eighth-seeded 2003 team against the top-seeded Pistons.<\/p>\n That Banchero dunk referenced earlier? It was the only made field goal the Magic had in the entire fourth quarter. That 1-for-20 mark, unsurprisingly, is the worst shooting percentage (5.0 percent) in a quarter in a playoff game since the 1997-98 season. The same is true of the 4-of-37 shooting mark (10.8 percent) in the second half; in fact, no regular-season game featured a lower shooting percentage in a half.<\/p>\n The Magic\u2019s previous franchise record for fewest made shots in a half in a playoff game was nine, set by the 2009 team in the Finals against the Lakers and \u2026 that same 2003 team in that same game against the top-seeded Pistons.<\/p>\n The Magic\u2019s 24-point blown lead wasn\u2019t the largest in an NBA playoff game; that record is 31 points by the 2018 Golden State Warriors in a game against the LA Clippers.<\/p>\n In fact, it\u2019s not even the biggest blown lead in a closeout game. That record belongs to the 2018 Jazz, who squandered a 25-point lead to the Thunder in Game 5 of their first-round series. The Thunder were down 3-1 in that series and seemed doomed after entering as the series favorite but gave themselves new life with a remarkable comeback.<\/p>\n Did you forget that game? If so, it\u2019s probably because the Jazz bounced back at home and won Game 6 to advance to the second round and render their Game 5 collapse irrelevant. At least the Magic have an opportunity to do the same in Sunday\u2019s Game 7.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nOne fourth-quarter field goal. Four second-half field goals<\/h2>\n
Reminder: They also blew a lead over that span in a closeout game<\/h2>\n