November 11, 2026 at 8:34 AM UTC
Pregame AnalysisDepleted Magic Get a Chance Against a Utah Team in Free Fall
Both rosters are thin, but Utah's turnover problems and missing playmakers give Orlando the slight edge.
This page is the pregame analysis. The box score is the main page for the game, and the matchup history collects every meeting between these teams.
Neither team arrives whole. Orlando will be without Paolo Banchero (high ankle sprain), Jalen Suggs (knee contusion and bone bruise) and Jonathan Isaac, who is still out for knee injury management and has not played this season. That takes away the Magic's top forward and a key guard, so their lineup is badly short.
Utah's situation may be worse. The Jazz are 1-9, riding an eight-game losing streak at the bottom of the West, and coming off a 112-100 NBA Cup loss to Dallas. Keyonte George is out with an ankle injury, which removes both his team-leading 21.1 points per game and Utah's top assist man. Lauri Markkanen is questionable with a right wrist sprain. He has been playing through pain with a heavy wrap on his shooting wrist, and more at center than usual, yet he still led Utah with 24 against Dallas. If he plays, the offense runs through him. If he doesn't, the Jazz have very few creators left.
The frontcourt compounds the problem. Jaren Jackson Jr. is out with a right knee MCL tear, and Jusuf Nurkic is out with a second plantar plate tear and will be re-evaluated in two weeks. That is two of Utah's three typical frontcourt starters gone.
The clearest on-court issue is ball security and shooting. Utah committed 21 turnovers against Dallas, ranks 26th at 17.4 per game, and shoots 31.5% from three. A shorthanded Orlando team doesn't need to be spectacular. It needs to stay organized and let the Jazz keep giving possessions away. Utah's best hope is a healthy Markkanen and a home crowd that helps snap the skid, but the missing playmakers and big men make that a steep climb. I expect a sloppy, low-rhythm game that Orlando edges late.
Prediction: Magic 108, Jazz 103.