The Magic certainly deserves a mulligan, sandwiching a pair of six game win-and-cover streaks around a loss two weeks ago vs. the Clippers before finally tasting defeat again last night at MSG vs. the Knicks. Still, Orlando has been one of the success stories of the first month-plus of the NBA season, and mostly enjoyed its five days in the big Apple, having beaten the Nets twice in Brooklyn before moving to Manhattan last night. Franz Wagner kept up the heat with another 30 points last night as the Magic actually did enough to advance the the quarterfinals of the NBA Cup, where the Bucks will await. The Sixers do have back-to-back wins for the first time this season, though beating the Pistons and Hornets isn't like beating the Celtics, and while Joel Embiid almost seems like a distraction these days, he is likely to miss again tonight with his knee issues. Note the Magic already whipped the Sixers (with Embiid, who scored 20) by a 98-86 count at Kia Center on November 15. Play Magic