The Orlando Magic’s injury list continues to expand.
Already without Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero, Orlando will be without backup center Mo Wagner as well when it faces the visiting Boston Celtics on Monday.
Mo Wagner sustained a torn ACL during the first quarter of the Magic’s 121-114 victory over Miami on Saturday night when his knee buckled on a drive to the basket.
Wagner, who is averaging 12.9 points and 4.9 rebounds per game in 30 games this season, was helped off the floor and taken to the locker room.
“We’re all praying for him,” Orlando center Goga Bitadze said. “This one was for Mo. It’s really bad to see one of our brothers go down. Like we’ve been saying, ‘Next man up.’ But this guy deserved better than this.
“I call him a one-man army. We were all playing for Mo. You look at the crazy numbers he’s had this season. Sixth man, definitely.”
Franz Wagner, Mo’s younger brother, and Banchero are Orlando’s top two scorers, and both are recovering from a torn right oblique.
The Magic also played Saturday’s game without guard Jalen Suggs, who was a late scratch with an ankle injury. Orlando trailed by 22 entering the fourth quarter, but outscored Miami 37-8 over the final 12 minutes.
“You can’t really explain that,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “That’s something I haven’t seen. I have not seen that ever in my years in the league, the ability to stay with it despite all of the circumstances that started in the beginning of the game. It’s a group that just continues to fight.”
Monday’s game will be another opportunity for Boston’s Jayson Tatum to build his case to win the NBA’s MVP Award.
Tatum collected 43 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists during Saturday’s 123-98 victory over Chicago. He connected on nine of his 15 3-point attempts in the win. In the process, he became the first player in Celtics history to have at least 40 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists in a game.
“I say this about him all the time because he’s been doing great things for such a long time, I still think he gets taken for granted,” Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said. “Because he’s done it for a long time, and because it comes relatively easy to him, and we’re in Boston, which is the expectation. But it was a big-time performance by him.”
Tatum, 26, scored three points in the opening quarter, tossed in 13 in the second, 18 in the third and nine in the fourth. He’s averaging 28.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists per contest and is shooting 46.3 percent from the floor.
“It’s a long game,” Tatum said. “You try to find ways to pick your spots, pick your stretches, especially on a team that’s this good. We’ve got so many guys that offensively, it’s just about finding your moments to dominate the game. Joe (Mazzulla) always just tries to get me to dominate and amplify my teammates and make guys better in different ways.”
–Field Level Media
