Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs has suffered another setback, and coach Jamahl Mosley had words of encouragement.
ORLANDO — The 2025-26 season has been a difficult journey for Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs.
The 24-year-old former fifth overall pick out of Gonzaga started the season by gradually ramping up his workload after going through recovery in the offseason following arthroscopic knee surgery. In the Magic’s Dec. 13 NBA Cup semifinal loss to the New York Knicks, Suggs suffered a left hip contusion that kept him sidelined for seven games. In just his second game back from that injury, he was dealt another blow to his health, this time in the form of a Grade 1 MCL contusion in his right knee during Orlando’s loss to the Chicago Bulls on Friday.
The team announced Suggs’ diagnosis on Saturday; saying that his return to the floor will depend on his response to treatment.
“That's tough,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said before Sunday’s game against the Indiana Pacers. “You know, your heart goes out to him just because he's just coming back. And then something happens again.”
Despite the frustration tied to another injury for Suggs, Mosley knows he will prevail because he has experience in bouncing back.
“But again, he's such a resilient young man that, you know, he's been through this process before. And, you know, he's going to continue to bounce back, you know, regardless of the scenario.”
Mosley also made sure to relay that message to Suggs.
“That reminder again that you've been through this before,” Mosley told Suggs. “And, you know, whatever this moment is. Just continue to find ways to grow and build and just push through again, not knowing exactly when the timetable of him coming back is but just being able to understand whatever that time frame is. He's felt that scenario before.”
After Friday’s loss to the Bulls, Anthony Black made it clear that the team is behind Suggs.
“We know how much Jalen loves the game,” he said. “You can see by just how hard he plays, how much passion he plays with. So, obviously, it's tough for him not being able to be out there. But we're trying to be there for him for as long as it takes him. Or we don't really know what's going on.”
“Whatever it is, we know we're there for him. We want him to be on the court, but we know he's got to take his injury seriously. And yeah, we're going to be there for him. We're going to play hard till he gets back, and we're going to be there for him along the way.”