Wagner's career-best efficiency and scoring surge position him for his first All-Star nod, even amidst team struggles.
The Orlando Magic have gotten off to a shaky start this season, but one thing has remained consistent, the nightly production from forward Franz Wagner. Whether he’s serving as the go-to scorer or locking down opponents on the perimeter in crunch time, Wagner has delivered an impressive start to the year. If he stays healthy, this could be the season he earns his first All-Star nod.
Franz Wagner is off to the most efficient start of his career, averaging 22.6 points per game while shooting 43.3 percent from three-point range. He’s also connecting on an impressive 50.9 percent of his total field-goal attempts. That marks a major improvement from last postseason, when he shot under 20 percent from beyond the arc.
With a revamped playoff model of American players vs International players, ESPN predicts Wagner is on the path to his first All-Star nod.
“Only an untimely oblique tear last December prevented Wagner from making a strong All-Star push in his fourth season,” ESPN wrote. “He was averaging 24.4 points and 5.7 assists at the time for a Magic team that was 16-9 without injured leading scorer Paolo Banchero. By the time Wagner returned a month and a half later, coaches were just about to vote for reserves.”
“ Wagner hasn't been the issue for Orlando,” the article added. “Making an unsustainable 43.3% of his 3s as part of career-best efficiency. But he probably needs the Magic to get back above .500 to have a chance at All-Star.”
Heading into the season, Franz Wagner turned heads with his performance in EuroBasket, positioning himself as one of the league’s top breakout candidates. His confidence from international play seems to have carried over, and the results of his offseason work are already showing.
“I’ve played every summer so far,” Wagner told reporters when asked if EuroBasket helped his development. “I feel good mentally and physically. For me, it’s just important to sustain it. Obviously, I want to keep getting better as the season goes on, not just for me, but for the whole team. It’s still super early in the season, so I’m just trying to take it one day at a time and learn from every game.”
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