CLEVELAND - Can you guess who in the league has made the most shots this season in the final 10 seconds of games when there is a score differential of five points or less?
The answer is Evan Fournier, who has made five shots in those moments. Rookie sensation Luka Doncic and MVP candidate Paul George have each made four and seven players, including Fournier’s Orlando teammate, Terrence Ross, have made three.
Fournier, doing his best Hedo Turkoglu impression (watch and compare below), drilled a 3-point dagger with 8.4 seconds left against the Pacers during the Magic’s thrilling, come-from-behind win on Saturday. The ironic part is that Thaddeus Young, who contested Turkoglu’s game winner from 10 years ago, was on the floor when Fournier sank his big shot over Bojan Bogdanovic.
Saturday’s three also looked similar to a clutch shot he made in 2015 against the Timberwolves.
Fournier made game-winning buzzer beaters earlier this season against the Cavs and Pistons.
The 26-year-old also had a game-tying dunk with 2.3 ticks left against the Raptors in November and a go-ahead triple with 6.3 seconds remaining against the Bulls in February, although the Magic would ultimately lose those games.
Fournier has always shot well from the 3-point right wing. In his 4 ½ seasons with the Magic, the 6-foot-7, 205-pounder is shooting 42 percent from that region. Although not quite as efficient this year (currently 39 percent), he shot 45 percent from there in 2017-18.
In three straight games, including Sunday’s contest in Cleveland, Fournier has made at least one trey from the right wing.
