When Desmond Bane hit a 3-point basket to deliver a knockout punch and help the Magic capture a 115-112 victory over the Trail Blazers on Monday night at Kia Center, the newly acquired Orlando guard handed Paolo Banchero perhaps the best birthday present he’ll receive this week.
The moments leading up to the shot, Banchero missed not one, not two, but three free throws over the course of two trips to the line in a contest that otherwise likely wouldn’t have required late-game heroics from Bane had they fallen.