Magic center exits with injury vs. Bulls

Goga Bitadze was playing well for the Orlando Magic, but he is unlikely to return against the Chicago Bulls.

Orlando Magic center Goga Bitadze reacts after his score against the Philadelphia 76ers. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Orlando Magic center Goga Bitadze is dealing with a hip injury suffered in the fourth quarter of the team's game against the Chicago Bulls.

Bitadze bumped into Bulls guard Josh Giddey while playing defense. He then tried to jump for the ball on the next play, but he was in visible pain and asked to be substituted out of the game.

Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun grabs a rebound away from Orlando Magic center Goga Bitadze. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Bitadze exits with hip injury vs. Bulls

Bitadze is playing well for the Magic, scoring eight points and adding four blocks, protecting the paint for Orlando.

Bitadze was dealing with a sore left ankle that held him out of the team's game against the Boston Celtics two weeks ago, but that doesn't appear to be much of an issue in regards to this specific injury.

So far this season, Bitadze is averaging 6.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game for the Magic, proving to be a key player off the bench while Moe Wagner waits in the wings recovering from his torn ACL surgery he had back in January.

Bitadze is coming off the heels of a EuroBasket run this past offseason with Georgia, where he helped make history for the country.

"It was great, great thing for the country of Georgia," Bitadze said of the EuroBasket run. "I mean, nobody has ever done that in the history of how many years that it was, like 35 years that we started, you know, being on EuroBasket and competing on a high level.

"... The population is 3.5 million, like the whole Georgia. And for us, you know, being able to beat Spain, being able to beat France, it wasn't like a fluke, you know, that we just beat some no easier teams, and we made it out to group.

"... It was also great for me personally, I think it's you could get that extra confidence that you know you can play with the best as a national team level, as a team, and also individually as well. So it was great summer for me."

Fans can watch the conclusion of the Bulls vs. Magic game on FanDuel Sports Network or Peacock.

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