Three days after his best NBA game to date, German rookie Tristan da Silva suffered a setback with the Orlando Magic. The team from Florida, which still has to make do without the long-term injured German world champions Franz and Moritz Wagner, lost to the Detroit Pistons 96:105. Orlando remains fourth in the Eastern Conference for the time being with 20 wins and 15 defeats.
The Munich-born da Silva remained largely pale this time and only threw towards the basket six times, without scoring any points. In the last game of 2024 against the Brooklyn Nets, he set a personal career best with 21 points. Orlando’s best player was Jalen Suggs with 24 points. Jaden Ivey stood out for the Pistons with 22 points, but he had to be taken off the field in the final quarter with a potentially serious leg injury.
Mavericks lose again
Maximilian Kleber also suffered another defeat with the Dallas Mavericks. In the Texas duel against the Houston Rockets, last year’s finalists lost 99:110 and lost the third game in a row. In the absence of top star Luka Doncic, who is still injured, Quentin Grimes surprisingly became the Mavericks’ best player with 17 points. Kleber finished the game with five points.
While Houston consolidated its third place in the Western Conference, Dallas slipped to fifth.
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Pelicans defeat overshadowed by attack
Meanwhile, the New Orleans Pelicans’ free fall continues. The team led by German world champion Daniel Theis, who remained without points, lost to the Miami Heat 108:119. It was the eleventh defeat in a row and the 29th in the 34th game of the season. The Pelicans’ game was overshadowed by the suspected terrorist attack in the southern metropolis of New Orleans on New Year’s Day, when a man drove into a crowd and killed at least 15 people.
“I’m devastated,” said head coach Willie Green after the game in Miami, referring to what he called the tragedy’s “senseless act of violence.” “We discussed it a bit with our players. But we live in a time and in a world where you simply don’t know where you are safe. Schools, churches, people should be able to go out and have fun and walk the streets. “It’s shocking,” he continued.