Before Jamahl Mosley began his media availability after practice on Thursday, he took a deep breath and decided to address the elephant in the room.
Goga Bitadze (hip contusion) did not go through practice. Jalen Suggs (low back strain) is doing more movement but is still progressing slowly and not practicing. Jett Howard was doing some treatment but could only do non-contact parts of practice. Gary Harris was doing more conditioning but not a full participant in practice.
The list was so long that Mosley forgot to address Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who missed Sunday’s game. He participated in practice but remains QUESTIONABLE for Wednesday’s game.
The Magic have a long injury list right now. It is getting closer to getting shorter.
Tuesday, the Magic took the big step of changing Franz Wagner’s designation to OUT – Return to Competition Conditioning. This is the final step in his recovery from the torn oblique that knocked him out of action five weeks ago.
At last some good injury news.
“I feel good,” Wagner said. “I think everything is going in a really good direction. I was able to do some more stuff on the court. I think pretty much the muscle is not the issue at this point. It’s about getting back in shape and making sure I check all the boxes before I get back into a game.”
The Magic are certainly eager for that return. It will still take some time.
Paolo Banchero needed two weeks of reconditioning before he stepped back on the court. The Magic do not put timelines on recoveries, but that would essentially put a target date for Wagner’s return at the Jan. 25 home game against the Detroit Pistons or thereabouts.
The Magic still have games to get through before then – including Wednesday’s critical rematch with the Milwaukee Bucks.
It feels like it could not come a moment too soon. The Magic at the midpoint of the season should be poised to make a strong second-half run as they get healthy.
The promise of finally having Wagner and Banchero healthy for the first time since October should give the Magic some offensive hope.
Orlando undoubtedly is struggling on that end, ranking 27th in the league with 108.5 points per 100 possessions. But when Banchero or Wagner are on the floor, the Magic are at least competent.
With Banchero on the floor this season, the Magic posted a 115.8 offensive rating. That would rank sixth in the league. With Wagner on the court, the team’s offensive rating is 113.2, which would rank 12th in the league.
When Banchero and Wagner shared the floor this year, the Magic had a 114.2 offensive rating.
There is a good offensive team in there when the Magic are healthy. Already, the Magic are dominating the minutes Banchero is in -- +6 in the three-point loss to the Bucks on Friday and +18 in the win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday.
It turns out that having your stars is helpful to build an offense. And the Magic being down both of their main creators helped factor into their offense cratering.
The Magic will have to wait just a bit longer for Wagner’s return. But it is something they are eagerly anticipating so they can finally see this team at full strength.
