Why this Orlando Magic center is getting praisse

After being a consistent member of the team's rotation for the first three months of the season, Magic center Goga Bitadze suddenly found himself on the outside-looking-in.

But upon Wendell Carter Jr. getting ruled out (ankle) moments ahead of the Magic's dominant 126-109 win over the Washington Wizards, Bitadze saw his most playing time in nearly two months. After the game, Bitadze received praise from head coach Jamahl Mosley for staying ready.

"When I say this, and I want everyone to listen as much as you can: That is the reason why Goga Bitadze is an absolute pro," Mosley said. "Not knowing what was going to happen; going through shootaround, just being on the sub pattern. And he hasn't played in who knows how long.

"But his ability to stay ready, to stay locked in, to follow the game plan, to guard the right guy, to do the right thing -- the same energy no matter what. He represents exactly what we need to have happen when your number is called.

"I can't give him enough credit for being able to be called in the last minute and come out, play the way that he did and impact the game."

"That is the reason why Goga Bitadze is an absolute pro. ... He represents exactly what we need to have happen when your number is called."

Jamahl Mosley on Goga Bitadze 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/YyZXR9vEf3
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) March 4, 2026

Goga Bitadze was impactful in Magic's win:

Bitadze saw the floor across 22 minutes in the Magic's 17-point win, marking the first time he played more than 12 minutes since Jan. 18.

A big part of that was the mid-January return of Moe Wagner, who's been an impactful piece of their rotation, albeit over a relatively small 20-game sample.

Bitadze was impactful beforehand, particularly on the glass and as a shot-blocker, where he rejected 1.2 shots in just 16.8 minutes over his first 38 games. But he recorded 12 DNP-CD's over a 15-game stretch from Jan. 26-March 1, playing just 24 combined minutes with 14 points, six rebounds and a pair of blocks.

Against the Wizards, the numbers weren't quite as loud. But the 6-foot-11 big tallied nine points with six rebounds, two assists and one block on 2-of-3 shooting. He got the free-throw line a season-high eight times, making just five of those attempts.

For the season, he's averaging 5.9 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in just 16.0 minutes; over a per-75-possession basis, Bitadze sports a near-13-11-3 block stat line on a career-best 71.4 percent true shooting.

Carter is currently listed as questionable ahead of Thursday night's game against an injury-riddled Dallas Mavericks team, where Bitadze's size could be a factor once again.