Magic guard Jalen Suggs leaves game with right knee strain; Wagner brothers could return within a week
jalen-suggs-right-knee-strain-wagner-brothers-close-to-return
Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs departed Friday’s 105-98 loss to the Chicago Bulls after sustaining a right knee strain midway through the third quarter, playing just 20 minutes before heading to the locker room. Head coach Jamahl Mosley said Suggs will be re-evaluated once the club returns to Orlando, and the team has not yet disclosed the severity of the injury.
Suggs, 24, had only just come back from a seven-game absence caused by a left hip contusion and had previously missed five games early in the season while recovering from left knee surgery. His impact has been evident: Orlando owns a +10.1 net rating when he plays, compared with –3.7 when he sits.
While the Magic await test results on Suggs, encouraging news could be on the horizon for two other rotation pieces. During the team’s pregame broadcast, FanDuel Sports Network Florida analyst Jeff Turner said forwards Franz Wagner (high left ankle sprain, out since Dec. 7) and Moritz Wagner (ACL tear suffered in December 2024) are expected to return within the next week.
Third-year guard Anthony Black continues to shine in an expanded role. The former No. 6 overall pick is posting career highs of 15.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Since moving into the starting lineup last month, the 21-year-old is averaging 20.6 points on 47.2% shooting overall and 39.1% from three-point range. Black will become eligible for a rookie-scale extension this offseason.
Discipline has been a recurring theme for Orlando. Six players have collected multiple technical fouls, led by Desmond Bane’s five. Following Wednesday’s narrow two-point win over the Indiana Pacers, Paolo Banchero and Bane each stressed the need for greater composure. “We’ve got to show a little more maturity as a whole,” Bane said, noting the entire roster had been “chirping back” at officials.
Source: Hoops Rumors
