Suggs, Magic 'Leave No Stone Unturned,' but Quad Injury Recovery Takes Time

Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley faced multiple questions Tuesday morning about Jalen Suggs' recovery timeline as he deals with a left quad contusion. Still only working in non-contact capacity, here's the latest Mosley had to say of Suggs.

Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) warms up before a game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

ORLANDO, Fla. – When the Orlando Magic square off with the Cleveland Cavaliers Tuesday night, the Magic will be without Jalen Suggs for a 13th straight game.

The fourth-year guard who, according to Magic coach Jamahl Mosley, only participated in non-contact portions of the team's Tuesday shootaround, has played in just one game since January 5. That means he's missed 23 of the last 24 games – 10 with a low back strain and 13 now with a left quad contusion he picked up his first game back.

It is a quad contusion, Mosley said, and when asked if there was a bone bruise of some kind, he confirmed there was some bruising. He also insisted that there hasn't been a setback, but rather, "[the injury] is something that takes time."

What, then, is the process like for determining when he'll be ready for contact?

"Again, everybody is different in how they respond to treatments, how they respond to the work that they've done that day," Mosley said. "You really have to go off of their body of work. It's how does he feel in those moments, what can he push through, where is the pain tolerance in a lot of ways. You've got to allow and have great lines of communication with our guys and see how they feel after responding to what has happened."

Such communication involves "constant" collaboration from both sides when evaluating each step of the process, Mosley said. All matters are discussed, from what's seen and what's done, to his required body of work to help him ramp up to an eventual return, how far Suggs can be pushed and what more, if anything, could be done daily.

"We're not leaving any stone unturned," Mosley continued. "We're trying to find every reason to see how he is, but also knowing it's very important that we look at long-term as well and make sure that he's full go when he steps on that court for us."

Preservation of his longevity has been a recurring theme in conversations about Suggs' status of late.

Speaking with reporters before the All-Star break, Suggs himself used the words "smart" and "cerebral" when discussing how he and the Magic were going about his recovery. Earlier that evening, before the Magic fell to the Atlanta Hawks, Mosley revealed that when Suggs does come back, he'd be on a minute restriction so he'd be ready for the long haul when integrated back in.

On the other side of the week-long season stoppage, Suggs didn't travel with the Magic to Atlanta for the one-off road game. Instead, he stayed back and received treatment at the AdventHealth Training Center.

He's been visible on the Magic's bench for each of the first two home games out of the break but wasn't seen during local media's viewing portion of Tuesday's shootaround.

The lack of a timeline for Suggs' injury, however, conflicts with the Magic's shortening fuse on the regular season. Orlando plays its 60th game of the season Tuesday versus the Cavs, but the starting guard has only been available for 35 of them.

"Long haul" is as much a reference to the outlook of his career as it is to the season's final-quarter sprint.

After his third NBA campaign concluded with a career-high 75 total games played, he's on track to be more in the neighborhood of the 48 and 53 he played in his first two seasons, respectively.

He wants to be on the floor, and the Magic need him as well. But until Orlando deems him fit to progress through the still-ahead stages of his recovery, that won't come just yet.

"There's a lot that goes into it," Mosley said. "I think being able to have him register exactly the feeling that he has going into it and us being able to be smart about how we go about assessing it and with the treatment as well."

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