The Orlando Magic were dealt another blow on Wednesday regarding forward Franz Wagner.
Orlando Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman announced on Wednesday that forward Franz Wagner will be sidelined indefinitely as he continues to experience soreness in his left ankle.
Wagner initially suffered a high sprain in his left ankle in a Dec. 7 game against the New York Knicks. Since then, the injury has caused him to miss 25 games across two separate stints.
“Recent imaging confirmed Wagner requires additional time and rehabilitation before returning to full basketball activities,” the team stated. “He will be re-evaluated in approximately three weeks.”
After missing 16 games in the aftermath of the injury, Wagner returned for the team’s trip to Europe for a pair of games against the Memphis Grizzlies; one of which was in Berlin, Germany, his hometown.
After the trip to Europe, Wagner subsequently missed Orlando’s next nine games as he dealt with soreness. He returned to the floor in a bench role capacity on Feb. 9 for the back half of the Magic’s four-game home stand heading into the All-Star break.
The news of Wagner’s renewed absence deals another blow to a Magic team that has been hampered by injuries to their core players. While Wagner has only appeared in 28 of the team’s first 53 games, guard Jalen Suggs has also missed 20 games with various ailments and star forward Paolo Banchero previously missed 10 consecutive games with a groin strain.
The injuries to Orlando’s best players have bred inconsistencies that have led to its 28-25 record and No. 7 ranking in the Eastern Conference. Following the Feb. 5 NBA Trade Deadline, Weltman expressed his concern with the perpetual nature of compromised health the team’s core group faces.
“I mean, it's concerning, you know,” Weltman said. “Look, every team has injuries, you know, but it's having these prolonged injuries. You know, all I can say is these are soft tissue injuries. There's nothing, you know, what can you say? It's the NBA, and this is what happens sometimes. And I do feel like we're a little bit Groundhog Day this season.”
“You know, the only thing is, I also think we're better this year because, you know, we added Desmond Bane. And so, I hate to keep saying it, but when this team has been healthy, it's been really good. And there does come a point where it's like, how long can you wait for that? Are we there yet?”
This season, Wagner is averaging 21.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists. The Magic return to action on Thursday against the Sacramento Kings, which kicks off a four-game West Coast road trip before they return home to host the Houston Rockets on Feb. 26.