Have Magic's Injuries Caught Up to Them? That's No Excuse, They Say

The Orlando Magic have lost nine of their past 13 games as they struggle to contend with a lineup depleted by injuries. But the Magic don't want to use their mounting absences as an excuse.

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) returns to the bench after injuring his eye during the second half against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. / Eric Canha-Imagn Images

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orlando Magic have stressed for weeks that, despite their miserable luck with injuries, they still have enough to eke out victories.

But this past week, reality hit them hard. Whether it was in Milwaukee or in Boston or back home versus Denver, a shorthanded Magic team was down three starters and three reserves to a full-strength, high-quality opponent. Three lopsided losses followed.

"I'd be lying if I said it was not [a challenge], if it wasn't difficult. And it is," Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said Sunday after a 113-100 loss to the Nuggets, his team's third straight double-digit defeat. "When you're playing with eight or nine guys, I think, you know, those guys are giving you everything they have every moment of the game. I just think we were tired out a little bit toward the end of that third quarter, because that's when you saw it come on."

To his point, Sunday's loss to the Nikola Jokic-led Nuggets came differently than Wednesday's loss at Milwaukee or Friday's loss at Boston. The Bucks game was over by halftime and the Celtics' shotmaking was too much for the Magic to match.

With eight minutes left on the third-quarter clock Sunday, Orlando held a 63-60 lead. But the Magic again ran out of steam as the Nuggets finished the quarter on a 33-14 run. In the fourth period, the visitors built a lead as large as 24 before garbage-time baskets brought the final deficit down to 13 points.

"Guys [aren’t], I can’t imagine, and nor am I, happy about the outcome of this game," Mosley said. "But I’m pleased with our effort and energy in that first half. Because being tired in Boston and then having to fly, come back, and give the energy and effort that they gave in the first half, that’s what you can ask for. As they tired out in that third quarter, that’s just the reality of what these guys are doing. They are playing so darn hard, night in and night out, no matter what.

"We’ve faced, no excuses, three fully loaded teams. When it comes to that, that’s where we are in the league. No one feels sorry for you. No one is going to give you a game off."

To that point, Orlando's opponents recognize the Magic's mounting injuries as a chance to capitalize. Before delving into what makes the Magic's defense so tough to score against, Nuggets coach Michael Malone prefaced his answer.

"Well, obviously they're not healthy right now, they've got a lot of guys out," he said. "But when they're fully healthy ... "

For the entire season to this point, Orlando's defensive rating is third-best (107.7 points allowed/100 possessions), allowing only 104.3 points a game. Only Oklahoma City's 103.6 points/game allowed is lower.

But as more bodies have been shelved, it's not just the Magic's offense that has dropped farther off the league average. Orlando's signature defense has taken a hit, too.

Magic's offensive, defensive & net ratings through 2024-25 season

To view the whole chart, scroll left and right on certain devices.

Period of Season	Off. Rating	Def. Rating	Net Rating	Team Record	Injured Players Out
Regular Season	107.7 (29th)	107.7 (3rd)	0.0 (16th)	23-21 through 44 games	136 games missed by players
10/23-10/30	111.8 (15th)	106.9 (5th)	4.8 (8th)	3-2, Full strength	No long-term injuries
11/1-12/6	109.9 (25th)	105.1 (2nd)	4.8 (9th)	13-7	Paolo Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr. for 13 games
12/8-12/21	109.9 (20th)	111.3 (16th)	-1.4 (16th)	2-3	Banchero, Franz Wagner, Gary Harris
12/23-1/3	102.1 (29th)	106.2 (3rd)	-4.1 (20th)	3-3	Banchero, Franz & Moe Wagner
1/5-1/19	102.4 (30th)	113.8 (15th)	-11.4 (28th)	2-6	Wagner brothers, Jalen Suggs, Banchero for 3 games, Harris, Goga BItadze for 4 games

Both the numbers and eye test show Orlando's injuries may have caught up to them. To this point, the Magic have lost 17 of the 25 games they've played against above-.500 teams, including their past five.

Do the players going through it feel that way?

"I think it's tough to say," Jonathan Isaac said in the Magic's Boston locker room. "The reality of it is it's hard to win in the NBA, period, you know. And it's hard to win when you don't have your full team, period."

"Just unlucky," said second-year wing Jett Howard, who is currently battling a left ankle sprain himself. "We take a lot of time treatment-wise, staying extra, [and] getting our time in. Especially Arnie [Kander, Magic VP of player performance and wellness] emphasizes it so much, and I think we do a good job of doing it. We're just unlucky, that's all."

"It happens to everybody every year, we just happened to get it this year," guard Jalen Suggs said, who has missed the past eight contests with a lower back strain. "I know Magic fans have kind of had a good amount of it in the past, probably getting a little PTSD, but it's a good challenge for us to maneuver."

A similar lull results-wise faced the Magic just last season. After getting out to a 16-7 start, the Magic then dropped 15 of their next 23 games.

Through 44 games, Orlando's 23-21 win-loss mark is identical to last season's record. But the Magic were much healthier overall in 2023-24, missing just 157 total games due to injury or illness. In 2024-25, Orlando players already have missed 136 games because of injury or illness.

Of those missed games, 34 belong to Paolo Banchero, 19 to Franz Wagner, 10 to Suggs and, after a season-ending ACL tear near Christmas, Moe Wagner will end the year with 52. These players are the Magic's four top scorers.

From the Magic's perspective, though, two things can be true: Yes, Orlando knows what it's been playing without. However, defaulting to that as a catch-all for its other issues won't help them escape this rut.

"I don't know that there's been any championship team or going-deep-in-the-playoffs team that has not gone through a [rough] patch," Mosley said. "There's been teams that have lost seven in a row, have lost 10 of the 12, that find a way — other than the teams that have won 72. There's not many spells for them to go without losing some games."

Added Mosley: "Not to take it lightly, because there are some things we need to clean up and fix ... but it's also not a reason to hit the panic button."

Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley directs his team against the Denver Nuggets in the fourth quarter at Kia Center. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

"We've got a group of resilient guys," center Wendell Carter Jr. said, who has 13 absences himself after an earlier bout with plantar fasciitis and knee tendinitis. "I feel like when our back is against the wall, we always end up finding a way. ... No one wants to go through it, but it's human nature. We're having our lulls. The injuries don't help either, but we never want to look at it as an excuse."

"I think it can be good for us if we watch what we're doing [and] just really figure out what we need to get better at," guard Anthony Black told locker room reporters on Sunday. "Just see how we can get back to playing our style of ball — whatever that is, I haven't really seen it."

Does the fact that the Magic have played only five games at full strength figure in that?

"I mean, yeah," Black said. "But we've proven that we can win regardless of who's out there. So it's easy to make that excuse, and it's very true. At the same time we know we could be playing much better."

Reinforcements are on the way. Banchero recently returned from his torn right oblique and Franz Wagner is taking contact in practice as he works through his recovery. Suggs is making "steady progress" in his day-by-day journey back to the court.

And the Magic's schedule finally lightens up in the near future. Orlando, 13-4 versus teams below .500, has the third-easiest remaining schedule by Positive Residual's remaining strength of schedule model (explained here). This recent slide has the Magic sitting seventh in the East, a half-game behind Atlanta for sixth and a game clear of Detroit in ninth.

"I think you have to zoom out in these circumstances, understanding where you are in the standings, with what's going on with the team, helping them understand and get the right perspective." Mosley said. "We're getting healthy bodies back soon. We've got to focus on us and not try to pile it all on."

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• FRANZ ENTERS RETURN TO COMP. CONDITIONING PHASE: Fourth-year Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner has been sidelined since Dec. 6, 2024 with a torn right oblique. CLICK HERE
• ISAAC HAS BELIEF SEASON CAN TURN AROUND: Jonathan Isaac says the first half of the 2024-25 season has been "rough" on him. But Sunday's breakout against the Philadelphia 76ers was a good sign. CLICK HERE
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