ORLANDO, Fla. \u2014 Jalen Suggs is back in the lineup for the Magic, and his return to the court in Orlando’s season-opener against the Heat was loud.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What You Need To Know<\/p>\n
Jalen Suggs returned to action for the Magic at the start of the season
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The guard’s playmaking, scoring and All-NBA level defense combined with his energy to give the team a boost
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Suggs went out with a left knee injury on Jan. 25, had to undergo surgery and did not play again until this season’s opener
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While he continues to work his way back, he is playing about 20 points per game and does not see action in both games of a back-to-back<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a game-changer,” said Magic guard Desmond Bane about Suggs’ performance on Oct. 22. “I tell him all the time he\u2019s the heart and soul of this thing. Without him, we\u2019d still be a really good ball club, but he\u2019s the guy that really puts us over the top.\u201d<\/p>\n
Suggs had 14 points, two assists and two steals against the Heat in the Magic’s 125-121 win. For the season so far, he is averaging 11.3 points, 4.3 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game.<\/p>\n
When he takes the court, Suggs puts a spotlight on his game, whether it\u2019s with his playmaking, scoring ability or his All-NBA-level defense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI love the game. I love winning, to be honest,” Suggs said. “I think that\u2019s my favorite part. It\u2019s always been my thing walking off the court a winner and however that looks.”<\/p>\n
He’s the Magic\u2019s Swiss Army knife.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This season, there\u2019s an energy and a joy he plays with that is undeniable, and that comes from knowing it can all be taken away at any moment. The season opener was his first game since Jan. 25. He sat out the rest of the 2024-25 season with a left knee injury.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rehab process is so long. It\u2019s so drawn out. It tests you in every way, shape and form,” Suggs said. “But to know we\u2019re preparing to play against the best. But be the best; chase being the best team in the league this year. It gives so much confidence and so much joy. It kind of carries through those long dark days of rehab.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Magic haven’t looked like one of the best teams in the NBA so far this season. They haven’t won a game since their home-opener, starting 1-4.<\/p>\n
Suggs will miss a game for the second time this season Thursday night, still playing limited minutes and being scheduled out on the second night of back-to-back games as he continues to work his way back from surgery to repair the left knee. He hasn’t played more than 21 of the 48 regulation minutes in any game so far this season.<\/p>\n
Forward Franz Wagner, the team’s second-leading scorer this season, is also listed as questionable for Orlando’s game Thursday against the Hornets in Charlotte, N.C.<\/p>\n
But Suggs found the light in his return on Oct. 22.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He said going through the darkness made him a better leader.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI always been a leader by example. Going through the injuries and sitting on the sidelines, you can\u2019t do anything but talk \u2014 but to be present for your team and be uplifting,” Suggs explained. “I just feel so much more confident in my voice and using it \u2014 along with my actions \u2014 to be a great leader.\u201d<\/p>\n
Suggs is exactly who the Magic need, and his unselfishness makes his game shine even more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ORLANDO, Fla. \u2014 Jalen Suggs is back in the lineup for the Magic, and his return to the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":250808,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[434],"tags":[112843,1014,3550,117180,49,48,6388,117179,459,44,16514,15716,24783,82,865,13272,39,1016],"class_list":["post-250807","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-app-professional-sports","tag-app-sports","tag-app-top-stories","tag-brandon-green","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-florida","tag-florida-sports","tag-nba","tag-news","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-magic","tag-professional-basketball","tag-sports","tag-sports-news","tag-tampa","tag-top-stories","tag-vod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250807","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250807"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250807\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/250808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250807"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250807"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250807"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}