Magic falter late, lose to the Hawks 95-83

The Orlando Magic keep repeating the same old story.

They control a game for most of the night, and then they collapse at the end.

It happened again Wednesday.

After they outplayed the Atlanta Hawks for almost three full quarters, the Magic’s inexperience and roster limitations caught up with them. Once ahead 71-64, they faltered down the stretch and lost to the Hawks 95-83.

“We’re going against teams that have been together for a while,” shooting guard Victor Oladipo said. “We’re going against experienced teams, and it’s tough. We’re still learning. We’re still trying to figure things out, but we’ve got to stop using that as an excuse in getting it done.”

If it wasn’t clear before Wednesday, it should be clear now: This offseason, the Magic need to add one or two veterans who can play on both ends of the court. The team desperately needs a well-rounded, gritty power forward and a small forward who can knock down open shots consistently and defend.

The Magic’s weaknesses hurt them during the final quarter.

Interim coach James Borrego wound up playing Andrew Nicholson at power forward down the stretch, and Nicholson is a player with clear limitations as a defender and a rebounder. Borrego could’ve played starter Dewayne Dedmon instead, but Dedmon, a defensive specialist, doesn’t add much offensively. Borrego also could’ve played Channing Frye, but Frye is a defensive liability, especially when he plays alongside center Nikola Vucevic.

The Magic’s current options at small forward are better but still flawed, especially with Evan Fournier out. Tobias Harris isn’t a dangerous long-range shooter at this stage of his career, and on defense he sometimes struggles. Youngster Aaron Gordon has potential, but he’s just a 19-year-old rookie.

A power forward with a more well-rounded game would better complement Vucevic, a center who relies on finesse. A knockdown shooter on the wing would better complement 21-year-old point guard Elfrid Payton and Oladipo, who is 22.

After the Magic went ahead 81-78 with 5:16 left in the fourth quarter, they allowed the Hawks to reel off 17 consecutive points.

Over the final 5:16, the Magic went 1 for 6 from the field and turned the ball over five times.

Paul Millsap ignited the run with an alley-oop dunk off a pass by Jeff Teague to cut Orlando’s lead to 81-80 with 5:06 to go. After a turnover by Payton, Teague drove down the center of the lane and scored on a layup.

Atlanta never trailed again.

“When we’re trying to get buckets down the stretch, our opponents’ energy, their defense, picks up,” Borrego said. “We’ve got to stay poised, keep our spacing, keep our execution and really find better shots than what we’re finding right now. That’s my job: to help them as a group. Collectively, we’ll get better there, and we need to get better there. But down the stretch in the fourth quarter, we’ve got to be better offensively.”

The Magic now have lost eight of their last nine games.

Just nine games remain in their season, and they hold a 22-51 record. They finished last season with a 23-59 record.

With their victory, the Hawks (54-17) snapped a three-game losing streak.

At the ends of the games, Atlanta has four All-Star options on offense: Millsap, a complete power forward; versatile center Al Horford; Teague, a versatile point guard; and Kyle Korver, a swingman who is deadly from long range and the free-throw line.

“We moved the basketball around,” Millsap said. “Jeff was able to get to the lane. We stuck with it. Shots weren’t falling earlier in the game. We didn’t let it get us down. We stayed with what we do.”

The Magic, on the other hand, lost their poise.

“I think we got a little stagnant and stopped moving the ball,” Payton said. “Myself, I’ve got to take better care of the ball. [I made] a couple of turnovers down the stretch, and they were able to take advantage. It was a tough game, a tough league to get a win in. “

And to win in the NBA, the Magic need to add two capable veterans.

jrobbins@orlandosentinel.com. Read his blog at OrlandoSentinel.com/magicblog and follow him on Twitter at @JoshuaBRobbins.