ORLANDO, Fla. _ The Orlando Magic traded a member of their nucleus Thursday and then received a lift from the player who replaced him in the starting lineup as well as a lift from one of the remaining members of the team's core.
Several hours after the Magic cast off point guard Elfrid Payton in a trade-deadline deal to the Phoenix Suns, new starting point guard D.J. Augustin and swingman Evan Fournier led the Magic to a 100-98 victory over the Atlanta Hawks at Amway Center.
Augustin finished with 18 points on an inefficient 5-of-14 shooting night, but he also dished out nine assists without a turnover.
Fournier scored a game-high 22 points. In the fourth quarter, he scored eight consecutive points to put Orlando ahead 94-89 with 57 seconds to play.
Payton's former teammates struggled to generate offense. The Magic made only 42 percent of their shots, but the Hawks were almost as bad, making only 43 percent of their attempts.
The Hawks took an 85-83 lead when point guard Dennis Schroder made one of two free throws with 3:36 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Augustin followed with a 3-pointer, but the Magic's lead was short-lived.
A few seconds later, John Collins received a pass from Schroder and dunked, giving Atlanta an 87-86 lead.
But Fournier scored from 6 feet as he was fouled by Tyler Dorsey and converted the ensuing free throw to put Orlando ahead 89-87 with 2:39 to play.
After Schroder missed a floater, Fournier drained a 3-pointer, extending the Magic's lead to five points with 2:08 remaining.
The Magic should've cruised from there, but when they were ahead 98-95, Mario Hezonja committed an offensive foul with 22.6 seconds to play.
On the Hawks' subsequent possession, former Magic center Dewayne Dedmon airballed a potential game-tying 3-pointer.
Augustin then iced the game by making two foul shots.
The trade of Payton is an opportunity for Augustin, a 30-year-old journeyman in the second year of a four-year deal.
On Thursday, Augustin started for the eighth time this season, and the Magic's record in those games is 6-2.
Augustin produced one of the game's best highlights several minutes into the first quarter. He unleashed a crossover that caused a much larger defender, forward Taurean Prince, to fall to Amway Center's parquet floor. Augustin drove to the hoop and laid the ball in, tying the score at 8.
With 4:36 to go in the second quarter, Augustin prompted several of his coaches to leap off their seats on the bench. Augustin drew a charge on forward Ersan Ilyasova, forcing a Hawks turnover. The play didn't give the Magic much momentum, however. The Magic gave up the next six points, and the teams entered halftime tied at 39.
For many basketball aficionados, or at least fans of quality offense, much of the game must've been difficult to stomach. In the first half, the Hawks sank only 28 percent of their shots, while the Magic made only 32 percent of their attempts.
The Hawks (17-38) and Magic (18-36) sit at the bottom of the NBA standings, but both teams carried two-game winning streaks into their matchup Thursday.
The Magic now have won three consecutive games _ the first they've done that since they strung together victories on Oct. 21, Oct. 24 and Oct. 27.
For the success to continue, Augustin will have to continue to play well.
Now that Payton is gone, Augustin will be front-and-center the rest of the season.
