Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner has torn his right oblique, and he is out indefinitely, the team announced Saturday. This is the same injury that Magic forward Paolo Banchero suffered five games into the season. Wagner will be reevaluated in four weeks.
This is a massive blow for the Magic and for Wagner, who has played at an All-NBA level in Banchero’s absence. Before Orlando’s 102-94 loss against the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday, it had won 13 of 14 games thanks largely to Wagner’s star turn. In 25 games this season, Wagner has averaged 24.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.7 steals in 33.2 minutes, with a 31.1% usage rate. All of those numbers are career highs, and his 57.3% true shooting percentage is virtually the same as it was with a much smaller offensive load last season.
The Magic are 16-9 and third in the Eastern Conference. They went 3-1 in NBA Cup group play and won the East’s wild card spot, which means they will face the Milwaukee Bucks in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. Before that, they will host the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. Entering these games, it is fair to wonder how they will be competitive without Wagner, particularly on the offensive end. They have scored 114.8 points per 100 possessions — roughly equal to a top-10 offense — and surrendered 105.4 per 100 with Wagner on the court this season, and without him, they’ve scored just 102.5 per 100 — worse than the league’s least efficient offense — and surrendered 110.5 per 100 in non-garbage-time minutes, according to Cleaning The Glass.
Orlando was short on shot creation before this injury. With Wagner sidelined, it will have to lean more on guards Jalen Suggs and Anthony Black in the halfcourt. This represents an opportunity for guard Cole Anthony, whose role has been reduced this season, and for center Moe Wagner, Franz’s brother, who functions as an offensive hub on the second unit.
When Banchero returns, he will have more than expected on his shoulders. A week ago, Banchero said he had just started to do some on-court work for the first time in a month, and he looked forward to being cleared to sprint and cut “hopefully in the next few weeks,” via the Orlando Sentinel.
It is possible that Wagner’s injury will mean that reintegrating Banchero, who scored a career-high 50 points days before his injury, will be smoother. Banchero will not have to worry about taking the ball out of Wagner’s hands or disrupting the team’s rhythm. The promise of these Magic, though, is that, with both of their star forwards playing at an elite level, they could make a big jump on offense. As a result of this news, that version of the team will remain only hypothetical for at least the next month.
