Latest Updates on Magic's Jalen Suggs and Moe Wagner

Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs' low back strain is confirmed, and center Moe Wagner underwent successful ACL repair surgery on his left knee, a league source told Magic on SI.
Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) drives to the basket against the Boston Celtics in the third quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit:
Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) drives to the basket against the Boston Celtics in the third quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
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ORLANDO, Fla. – Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs' low back strain has been confirmed after undergoing further evaluation, a league source told Magic on SI.

There is no current timetable for a return, which will be dependent on how he responds to treatment. Suggs left the Magic's Jan. 3 game at Toronto by wheelchair in the second quarter.

At Wednesday's practice, Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said Suggs was "doing okay. We're going to continue to evaluate him and see how he keeps responding to the different treatments that we're giving him."

Regarding what he was able to do Wednesday, Mosley said: "He's just moving around a little bit, just going through [the] treatment process."

He's appeared in 34 games this season, averaging a career-best 16.4 points and 4.1 rebounds a game in 29.0 minutes. As the Magic's lead guard, he's averaging 3.7 assists – the second-best mark of his four-year NBA career.

The back strain has caused two consecutive absences, and he'll miss Thursday's contest vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves with the same ailment. Two other absences this season have come because of a hamstring strain and an ankle sprain earlier this season – each only accounting for one missed game.

"The images came back with what we thought, back strain," Mosley said Thursday. "So just continue to monitor him as this goes on and see how he keeps responding to what we do."

Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) lays on the court after being injured against the Toronto Raptors
Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) lays on the court after being injured against the Toronto Raptors during the second quarter at Scotiabank Arena. / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

That wasn't the only health update that came Thursday morning.

Moe Wagner underwent successful surgery to repair a torn left ACL on Wednesday, Jan.8, the league source said. He is out for the remainder of the 2024-25 regular season, as previously reported

Wagner, 27, suffered his ACL tear in the first quarter Magic's Dec. 21 win over the Miami Heat.

The 6-10 German big had appeared in all 30 of Orlando's games, averaging 12.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in roughly 19 minutes a game. He shot 56.2 percent from the field. He'd evolved into one of the NBA's best reserve scorers, ranking second in total points off the bench and 15th in field goal percentage at the time of his injury.

He'd appeared in all 30 games for the Magic – leading them in scoring once and four times in rebounding. A career-high 32 point performance was the best of 23 double-digit outings this year.

Teammate Goga Bitadze said the team caught up with Wagner over FaceTime before the practice, where the injured center said he "could still give [the Magic] buckets."

"Coming post-surgery, he absolutely had the nerve to say, 'You know what, I'll still give you guys buckets,'" said Mosley Thursday, recalling the interaction. "But that's him, you know what I mean? That's what these guys feel about him, that's the way he feels. That's just the group that these guys have created amongst each other."

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