Magic Gaming Reaches SLAM OPEN Winners Bracket Finals with Win Over Nets GC

The Lead: If there’s one squad that no one in the NBA 2K League wants to face right now, it’s Magic Gaming. Orlando demonstrated once again on Friday night why it’s the hottest team in the 2KL, as it defeated the previously undefeated Nets GC to advance to the SLAM OPEN 3v3 winners bracket finals.

Magic Gaming will need just two more victories on Saturday to claim the SLAM OPEN banner title.

“It’s very exciting since it would be the first in Magic history,” said Orlando point guard Joshua “unguardable” Hunter. “That’s the goal always, just to play for the Magic (franchise). Just to do everything for the organization. I feel like the org has helped me in ways that people couldn’t even understand. It’s big for the org. Hopefully, we get the job done. The job is not finished, of course.”

Game 1: One night earlier, unguardable said that he’s confident in Ashton “LowkeyGodlike” Agredano taking any shot on the floor. That faith in his big man was on display in the series opener. As unguardable dished the ball to an open LowkeyGodlike with the contest on the line, Orlando’s floor general instantly stood up in celebration with full belief that the second-year standout would knock down the game-winner. And he was right.

LowkeyGodlike connected on a game-winning triple to lift Orlando to a 22-16 victory over Brooklyn. Unguardable scored a contest-best 15 points, while LowkeyGodlike notched five points, two rebounds, and five assists.

“I think he’s hit four game-winners already since he’s been here,” unguardable said of his teammate. “I’ve played with some great shooters in this league, but I think he’s definitely No. 1 when it comes to that. You always expect him to make the shot.”

Game 2: It’s no secret that unguardable is capable of taking over any given contest at any given time. That’s exactly what happened in this one. The reigning NBA 2K League All-Star Game MVP exploded for a game-high 18 points as Magic Gaming rolled to another 22-16 victory.

Just as he did in the prior contest, unguardable jumped out of his seat while the final shot was in the air. However, this time it was a result of knowing that his own game-winning 3-pointer was about to fall.

“He’s really scoring at all three levels right now, which is really awesome to see,” said Magic Gaming general manager and head coach Jonah Edwards of unguardable.

Game 3: The Nets would not go down without a fight. Point guard Tariq “Greens” Reed and small forward Shun “Streetz” Brown each fired off 10 points to help Brooklyn deal Orlando its first loss of the series, a 22-15 defeat.

Unguardable led Magic Gaming with nine points.

Game 4: Orlando ensured that any Brooklyn momentum was short lived. Unguardable poured in a contest-best 14 points, including the series-clinching slam, to give Magic Gaming a 21-17 victory. As he did all series long, small forward Julian “Jboolin” Manzanares played suffocating defense for Orlando to help fuel the win.

Up Next: Magic Gaming will face Lakers Gaming on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET in the SLAM OPEN winners bracket finals.

Since it’s a double-elimination tournament, if they win, they’ll face the winner of Lakers Gaming and the winner of the losers bracket finals. While Magic Gaming would then only need one series victory, their opponent would need to claim two series triumphs because, as previously mentioned, it’s a double-elimination tourney.

However, if they drop their matchup with L.A., Orlando will be the ones to face the winners of the losers bracket for the opportunity to face the Lakers once again.

Quote to Note: “It would mean so much to myself, the guys, (and) to this organization (to win). But the job is not done. We are so iron focused right now. We are not even talking about who we are going to play next round. Those words are pretty much banned right now. We are so focused on the series in front of us. So, it’s Lakers at 3 p.m. tomorrow. That’s a must win to me. If we win, we can win the whole thing. But one at a time. Very much so.” – Edwards

How to Watch: Fans can watch games live on the NBA 2K League’s Twitch and YouTube channels.