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The Orlando Magic face the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Play-In Tournament on Wednesday night.

Superstar center Joel Embiid is once again sidelined for Philadelphia, and that factors into my NBA picks in the player props markets.

See why my Magic vs. 76ers props for April 15 are backing one point guard and fading another.

And don't miss Jason Logan's full-game Magic vs. 76ers predictions!

Best Magic vs 76ers props

PlayerPick Tyrese MaxeyUnder 6.5 assists-145 Goga BitadzeOver 4.5 rebounds+100 Jalen SuggsOver 2.5 threes+150

Prop #1: Tyrese Maxey Under 6.5 assists

-145 at bet365

Tyrese Maxey leads the Philadelphia 76ers with 28.3 points and 6.6 assists per game. That said, Maxey's assist numbers have fluctuated depending on whether or not Joel Embiid is in the lineup.

In 35 games with Embiid this season, Maxey averaged 7.5 apg, but that number dropped to 5.7 apg in 35 games without the high-scoring center.

The All-Star point guard has logged five assists or less in four of his last five games. Meanwhile, the Orlando Magic have allowed the eighth-fewest assists per game (25.3) in the NBA. 

Prop #2: Goga Bitadze Over 4.5 rebounds

+100 at bet365

Goga Bitadze saw his playing time increase towards the end of the regular season, and his production ramped up with it. Orlando's backup center grabbed 7+ boards in four of his last five contests, averaging 9.0 rebounds per game over that span.

The 76ers have struggled on the glass, especially when Embiid isn't in the lineup. Philly is 22nd in the NBA in rebounds allowed per game (45.3), with that number ticking up to 47.0 over the last month. 

Prop #3: Jalen Suggs Over 2.5 threes

+150 at bet365

Even without Embiid, the Sixers clog the paint on defense, which has led to them allowing 40.2 3-point attempts per game since the All-Star break — the third-highest number in the league. 

The Magic will have to utilize their outside shooting to get their offense going, and Jalen Suggs has been their most reliable option from the arc. 

Suggs has knocked down 2.6 threes per game at a 36.4% clip over his last 20 contests. He's coming off a game where he drained seven shots from deep, and he has eclipsed 2.5 threes in five of his last six games.

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#TheRetention has officially kicked off.

Wednesday morning, the freshman forward went live on Twitch to deliver the news the Illini faithful had been nervously waiting for: that he’s gonna be back for at least one more year in Orange and Blue.

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For Illinois fans, Mirkovic’s return immediately provides a sense of optimism surrounding next season. It also raises the question of whether Mirk’s return will rub off on the rest of the potential returners, and incentivize coming back for guys like the Ivisic twins, Andrej Stojakovic and Jake Davis.

It took just one game — the season-opening exhibition matchup against ISU — for the Montenegrin to begin drawing eyes from Illini fans, where he posted a 19-point, 14-rebound double-double.

And throughout the season, his stats spoke for themselves.

Weirdly enough, Mirkovic posted the same exact stat line in the official season opener versus Jackson State. Then posted another double-double in the next game against FGCU. And against Colgate? The freshman finished with 27 points and 21 rebounds.

That’s when Illinois knew they found a gem.

Game after game, Mirkovic improved. Not only did he learn from some of his early-season freshman mistakes, but he bought into the culture rapidly fast and learned what it meant to be an Illini.

#Illini David Mirkovic: "When I expected when I committed her that Illinois is going to grow [to mean] this much to me, and that I'm going to have this much fun… Beautiful, beautiful memories." pic.twitter.com/u1Pl1vxDGr

— Glenn Kinley (@glenn_kinley) April 5, 2026

And he wasn’t one to back down, no matter the stakes.

That became apparent during a post-game interview after the win over Purdue at Mackey Arena, where Mirkovic stated that if he didn’t play and Illinois had lost, he probably would’ve done some hurtful things to himself.

But that was just the beginning. David continuously reminded Illini fans how much this team meant to him, and how badly he wanted to win.

Mirkovic played a major factor in Illinois’ Final Four run, kicking off the tournament on a high note by exploding for 29 points and 17 rebounds in the first-round win over Penn. Over the course of the next four tournament games, he racked up 36 points and 32 rebounds.

David’s sophomore season is primed to be an even bigger one.

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