Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony has had a resurgence in performance lately. Against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, Anthony led the team with 27 points on 64.7 percent shooting from the field, giving the Magic a 104-99 victory. After the victory, the guard talked about how he got his mojo back.
The Magic have been marred by injuries in the 2024-25 NBA season. The Wagner brothers have been out, and Mo is listed as out for the rest of the season due to a torn ACL. The team also has six players on the injury report as playing time decisions ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Because injured players have been piling up in the medical room all year, the return of any team member would be a blessing in disguise. Fortunately for Orlando, Anthony has taken a step forward in recent games.
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After their win against the Sixers, Anthony has a romantic explanation for how he got his groove back.
“I’m happy I saw that ball go through the hoop a few times, it felt good,” Anthony said. “The old lady and I have been having some problems lately. I’m glad we got over the problems and got over our differences and got back to the loving and caring relationship we have.
“With women, sometimes you have to talk nice to them. I wasn’t talking nice enough to Mrs. Wilson. I started trying to be nicer to her and she started reciprocating her feelings.”
Cole Anthony has been the starting point guard for the last five games, while Jalen Suggs has dealt with a back issue. During that span, the high-flying guard averaged 18.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists on 45.5 percent shooting from the field.
Also read: ‘Dirty player’: NBA fans descend on Cole Anthony as Jaden Ivey is evaluated for a broken fibula after a collision with the Magic guard.
How has Cole Anthony played for the Magic this season?
Cole Anthony has struggled to help the Magic this season. Although he is the team’s immediate contributor, he has not performed well this year. He has played 38 games, averaging 7.9 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists on 40 percent shooting from the field.
He has struggled to be a consistent scorer since the season began, as he also shoots a modest 30 percent from deep. Anthony’s shooting from 3-point range is far from his 33 percent shooting last season.
His best game occurred on December 21 in a 121-114 victory over the Orlando Magic.
The point guard came off the bench and scored 35 points, eight rebounds and nine assists on 52 percent shooting from the field.
Edited by William Paul.