ORLANDO, Fla. — The three security guards posted at the southeastern tunnel of Kia Center’s hardwood floors aren’t waving at Magic fans soaking in another home win. They’re covering their mouths, grinning, and waving at the Knicks fans — the traveling pack that shows up in every city, every night, rain or shine — as those fans head for the exits.

And they’re heading out early. Because midway through the fourth quarter, the Knicks fell apart again. And the Magic crowd, long forced to stomach so much blue-and-orange noise on their home court, finally got its moment to let those road fans hear it.

By the final buzzer, it was a 133-121 Magic win, their second against New York this season — and a reminder that if these two teams meet in April, the Knicks will have to fix the exact weaknesses Orlando has exposed twice already.

They understood the assignment after the first meeting, a 17-point collapse that snapped New York’s season-opening home streak. The Knicks admitted then that Orlando’s physicality broke them. That they weren’t ready.

“They were physical, they were the more physical team that night and I like the fact that our team took ownership of it and didn’t use excuses because there could have been a million excuses that night that we could have used. But we’re a no-excuse team,” head coach Mike Brown said after practice on Friday. “It doesn’t matter what our schedule is, doesn’t matter about the officials. It doesn’t matter about any of that. We’ve gotta go play the right way when our number’s called and we didn’t do a good job of it that game, and it started with how physical they were coming in and punching us in the mouth first.”

On Saturday, they were ready for the bruises. But physicality wasn’t the problem this time.

Defense — or the absence of it — is the issue.

The Knicks gave up dunk after dunk, layup after layup, and a parade of frustration shrugs as the game unraveled. Mike Brown waved the white flag with under three minutes to go, emptying his bench in what looked less like strategy and more like a need to start searching.

Because after Saturday, Brown may have no choice but to dig deeper into his rotation.

OG Anunoby remains out with a left hamstring strain. Miles McBride missed the game with an illness. And worse, Landry Shamet appeared to re-dislocate the same shoulder that cost him the entire front half of last season — a first-quarter collision with Jalen Suggs and Wendell Carter Jr. sending him straight to the locker room.

Suddenly, the Knicks’ supply of three-and-D wings evaporated. And without them?

You get a defensive disaster.

The Magic scored 64 points in the paint. New York offered little point-of-attack resistance. When Brown turned to Mitchell Robinson, Orlando simply dragged him out of the paint, then blew by the next line of defense.

Jalen Brunson (33 points, 12 of 21 FG) held up his end on offense. Karl-Anthony Towns (24 points, 10 of 11 FT, 6 of 14 FG) did what he could in a shaky shooting night. Jordan Clarkson added 15, Mikal Bridges 18 — nine of them in the first quarter.

But offense is not the Knicks’ problem — not this season, not with this roster.

Defense remains the glaring, neon-lit issue.

Franz Wagner went for 37 points on 13-of-19 shooting. Desmond Bane: 27 on 10-of-20 shooting. Jalen Suggs: 26 on 9-of-18 shooting.

All three shot 50% or better. All three looked comfortable.

And Bane — the same Bane traded for a five-first-round-pick haul — was proof of a broader narrative running beneath the surface.

Both the Knicks and Magic have gone all-in over the last two summers, pushing five first-round picks to acquire the exact type of “finishing piece” teams usually chase only when a championship is within reach.

The Knicks surrendered unprotected picks in 2025, 2027, 2029, 2031 plus Milwaukee’s 2025 first for Mikal Bridges, before landing Towns.

The Magic pushed four firsts plus a swap for Bane.

And right now? The Magic are ahead in that race.

Up 2-0 in the season series. Playing the Knicks like a team that knows it will see them again.

As the Knicks walked off, they endured one more loss — worse than the fans being waved away.

That ridiculous, addictive, unavoidable Magic theme song blasted through the speakers.

And the Knicks will hear it — over and over — until they find an answer for a team they are bound to face again.

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