The Orlando Magic have already been without one key player and, starting Sunday night, will have to manage without another.
The Magic will play against the Phoenix Suns without forward Franz Wagner, who tore his right oblique in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.
Wagner joins Paolo Banchero, who has been out since October 30 with a similar injury. Banchero could return later this month. Wagner will be re-evaluated in four weeks, as the team announced on Saturday.
With Banchero sidelined, Wagner became the primary option for the Magic and has had a breakout season, averaging 24.4 points, 5.7 assists, and 5.6 rebounds per game. He also set a career high with nine consecutive games of 20 or more points.
Orlando has won seven of its past nine games with Wagner stepping up and holds a 13-7 record without Banchero.
“This is a great challenge for us,” Wagner said Friday night, before the details of his injury were known. “We’re a young team trying to find our way in this league and trying to find ways to win even with different circumstances.”
The Suns have lost their last two games and will be without star Kevin Durant, who is out with an ankle sprain.
Phoenix has a 1-8 record without Durant on the court.
Durant has played 13 games this season, averaging 25.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists.
Devin Booker is the only member of the Suns’ “Big Three” to play in all 22 games so far. The four-time All-Star guard is averaging 24.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 6.4 assists, and shooting 90.4 percent from the free-throw line. Guard Bradley Beal missed two weeks in November but has returned and is averaging 17.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.4 assists in 14 games.
Sunday’s game will be the third of a four-game road trip for the Suns. The Magic will be happy to be back home, where they are undefeated with a 9-0 record. Orlando has had the most road games in the NBA so far this season (16 games, with a 7-9 record).
“I think we have battled through the entire time,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said Friday after the loss to the 76ers. “Through this entire road trip, we never stopped fighting. We played hard for 48 minutes to give ourselves a shot in every game.”
Orlando has the No. 1 defense in the NBA, allowing 103 points per game. With Wagner out, point guard Jalen Suggs and center Moritz Wagner, Franz’s brother, will likely need to take on more of the scoring load.
The Magic defeated the Suns 109-99 on November 18 in Phoenix and have won three of the last five matchups between the teams.
