© Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports
Jalen Suggs shines on NBA's biggest stage
Former Gonzaga standout played a pivotal role in the Orlando Magic’s first playoff victory at home in over a decade
Just four days ago, it looked like Jalen Suggs’ 2023-24 season was over as he winced in pain, holding his left knee on the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse court after colliding knees with Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell.
Suggs would eventually return to Game 2 in the second half, though it was too little too late for the Orlando Magic as they went down 0-2 in the best-of-seven first round series. Suggs said he’d be ready to go for a must-win Game 3 on Thursday, as the Magic sought to avoid an 0-3 deficit on their home court. To get back into the series and fend off elimination, they were going to need their former No. 5 overall pick out of Gonzaga to complement rising star Paolo Banchero on the offensive end of the floor.
Game 3 got off to a bumpy start, much like the first two games between the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds. Orlando sputtered out of the gate, missing their first eight field goal attempts to dig an early hole for themselves. Not the response the team was looking for after shooting 34.3% from the field in Cleveland.
Then the switch flipped. Franz Wagner knocked down a pair of jumpers, including a 24-foot 3-pointer assisted by Suggs, followed by another triple from Suggs moments later. Banchero’s first of four 3-pointers on the night gave Orlando its first lead in the series at the 5:27 mark in the first quarter.
The Magic never looked back. Banchero finished with 31 points, Suggs added 24 and Orlando won its first playoff game at home since 2011 in a 121-83 blowout over Cleveland to make it a 2-1 series. At one point it was a 54-point lead in the fourth quarter, the Magic’s largest lead entering the fourth quarter in postseason history.
As for Suggs, he erased any concerns over his health status with two ferocious dunks. Late in the first half he took advantage of Cleveland’s zone defense with a hard cut from the top of the arc, received the pass from Wagner and slammed home a one-hand dunk to extend Orlando’s lead to 21 points. Suggs put some extra flash on his second dunk after he intercepted a pass from Marcus Morris Sr., raced up court ahead of the pack and threw down a windmill dunk late in the third quarter with the game already decided.
Suggs, who was spotted sporting a shirt that read “seek discomfort” after Game 3, has spent much of his NBA career battling through pain and injury. Knee and ankle problems, among other bumps and bruises, forced him to sit out 43 games in his first two seasons as a pro. On top of inconsistent shooting, some wondered what his future in Orlando looked like heading into this season with Cole Anthony and Markelle Fultz eating up minutes in the backcourt rotation.
Any such doubt was put to rest following a career-year from the 22-year-old Suggs, who finished eighth in the Most Improved Player race after putting up 12.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He also shot 39.7% from downtown, started 75 games and played more minutes than both Fultz and Anthony.
Suggs is no stranger to the big stage. It seems like a distant memory, but it was only three years ago that he hit arguably the biggest shot in Gonzaga basketball history. Locked in a 90-90 tie in overtime in a national semifinal game played during the COVID-19 pandemic, Suggs banked in a 30-footer at the buzzer to give Gonzaga a 93-90 victory and send them to the national championship game.
