Miami Heat vs Orlando Magic Prediction, 12/26/2024 Preview and Pick

Game: Miami Heat vs Orlando Magic

Date: Thursday, December 26, 2024

Location: Kia Center in Orlando, FL

TV: FanDuel Sports Network

The Miami Heat (13-13) are traveling to Kia Center on Thursday where they will attempt to defeat the Orlando Magic (18-12).

The Heat took the court against the Magic and ended up losing by a score of 121-114 in their last contest. Miami wrapped up the contest with a 48.0% field goal percentage (36 of 75) and buried 9 out of their 32 three-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Heat converted 33 of 42 tries for a rate of 78.6%. In the matter of rebounding, they compiled a total of 38 with 7 of them being offensive. They also recorded 16 dimes in the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and earning 7 steals. When discussing the defense, Miami allowed the other team to shoot 49.4% from the field on 43 of 87 shooting. Orlando totaled 24 assists and had 5 steals in the game. Additionally, Orlando collected 41 rebounds (10 offensive, 31 defensive) and had 2 rejections. Orlando went 88.9% at the charity stripe by making 24 of 27 attempts. They also converted 11 out of their 37 attempts from 3-point range. With respect to personal fouls, the Heat walked away with 25 and the Magic had 23 personal fouls.

Bam Adebayo is someone who was a major factor in the matchup. Adebayo ended up shooting 53.3% from the field but wasn't able to get a dime. He was on the court for 34 mins and snagged 6 boards. He racked up 23 points on 8 out of 15 shooting.

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Miami enters this matchup with a record of 13-13 this year. They have an average of 112.2 points per game (16th in the league) while hitting 45.3% from the field. The Heat are connecting on 37.3% on shots beyond the perimeter (376 of 1,009) and 77.8% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Miami is grabbing 43.6 boards per contest and has accounted for 669 dimes for the season, which is 23rd in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. They cough up possession 13.2 times per contest and as a squad are committing 16.6 fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end of the court, the Heat are forcing 15.2 turnovers per game and they draw 19.2 personal fouls. They are 8th in the NBA in allowing assists with 696 relinquished for the year. The Heat defense is allowing a shooting percentage of 46.3% (1,057 of 2,283) and they relinquish 45.5 boards per contest as a squad. They are giving up 36.5% on shots from beyond the arc and they rank 8th in basketball in points per game allowed (109.9).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Magic walked away with a victory by a final of 121-114 against the Heat. In reference to how they rebounded, Orlando allowed Miami to get 38 in total (7 on the offensive side). They wrapped up this game 28.1% from downtown by hitting 9 out of 32 and ended up going 33 out of 42 from the free throw line (78.6%). The Magic permitted the Heat to bury 36 of their 75 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 48.0% in this game. In all, the Magic went 43 out of 87 from the floor which had them at 49.4%. In relation to 3-point shots, Orlando converted 11 out of their 37 attempts (29.7%). They were able to knock down 24 of them for a percentage of 88.9%. The Heat committed 25 personal fouls in this contest which took the Magic to the charity stripe for a total of 27 tries. They also turned the ball over 13 times, while recording 5 steals in this game. The Magic pulled down 31 defensive boards and 10 offensive rebounds for a total of 41 in the game.

Cole Anthony ended up being important for the Magic in this contest. Anthony earned 35 points in his 28 minutes on the hardwood and had 9 assists in the game. He made 13 out of 25 for the game for a field goal percentage of 52.0%, and accumulated 8 rebounds.

Orlando has a win-loss record of 18-12 for the year. The Magic have committed 20.3 fouls every game and they connect on 78.6% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 23.9 times per game (26th in the NBA) and they turn it over 15.1 times per game. Orlando has 3,218 pts for the year (107.3 per game) and they collect 42.0 boards per game. On the offensive side of the ball, the Magic are hitting on 45.2% from the field, which ranks them 23rd in basketball.

The Magic defensively are ranked 2nd in the league in PPG surrendered with 103.9. They are forcing their opponents into 16.9 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 46.3% from the field (14th in the league). The Orlando defense allows 36.2% on three-point shots (346 of 955) and their opposition makes 76.4% of their free throw attempts. They have surrendered 22.7 dimes and 40.4 total boards per game, which ranks 2nd and 1st in the league.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Orlando

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