Wendell Carter Jr. 'Excited' to Return to Magic After Month-Long Injury

The Orlando Magic saw the return of Wendell Carter Jr. in Friday's win against the San Antonio Spurs.

Jeremy Brener | Dec 24, 2022

Wendell Carter Jr. 'Excited' to Return to Magic After Month-Long Injury /

ORLANDO - When Wendell Carter Jr. went down with a plantar fascia injury a month ago, the Orlando Magic was in a much different spot than it is now.

When Carter last played before his return to the court in Friday's win against the San Antonio Spurs, the Magic was 5-11.

Orlando struggled to find an identity in the frontcourt in Carter's absence, losing the first nine games without him. But then, a lightbulb appeared to turn on.

"For me, sitting on the sidelines throughout this stretch, I feel like defensively we did a really good job of locking in on the details and making in-game adjustments when need be," Carter said. "Offensively, we were sharing the ball like no other."

Carter's time away from the court forced other players to step up, giving others the capability to be one of the team's focal points on any given night.

"That is one of the recipes for a great team," Carter said. "It can be anybody’s night at any moment. I’ve always preached that since the beginning of this year. It’s starting to finally show and like I've always said, the sky’s the limit for this team. I’m just excited to be a part of it.”

Carter came off the bench in his return during Friday's win against the Spurs. In 18 minutes, he scored eight points and grabbed four rebounds. It's unknown if he'll re-enter the starting five at some point given how successful the team has been lately with Moe Wagner filling his role, but regardless of who starts, it's apparent that Carter plays a key role for the Magic.

Carter looks to continue getting back into his groove Tuesday when LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers come to town. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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Published Dec 24, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.