{"id":213565,"date":"2026-03-31T20:55:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T20:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/213565\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T20:55:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T20:55:08","slug":"orlando-magic-injury-update-franz-wagner-progressing-well","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/213565\/","title":{"rendered":"Orlando Magic injury update: Franz Wagner ‘progressing well’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Franz Wagner<\/a> continues to inch toward a return to the court with only seven games remaining in the regular season after Tuesday\u2019s matchup between the Magic<\/a> and Suns<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Wagner, who\u2019s dealt with the extended rehab of a left high ankle sprain, has gone through physical sessions of 5-on-5 during on-court workouts, Orlando<\/a> coach Jamahl Mosley<\/a> said Tuesday morning inside the AdventHealth Training Center.<\/p>\n

\u201cFranz is progressing well,\u201d Mosley said when the Orlando Sentinel asked how close the Magic forward is to returning. \u201cWe\u2019ll see how he responds to that treatment today and go from there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wagner originally suffered the injury Dec. 7 at New York and has since tried to return twice without success. He played two games against the Grizzlies in mid-January when Orlando traveled overseas to Berlin and London, and then saw limited minutes of action in a pair of games against the Bucks ahead of the NBA All-Star break in mid-February.<\/p>\n

Including Tuesday, Wagner has missed 22 games in a row and 47 of the past 51 contests because of the injury.<\/p>\n

After two failed attempts to bring Wagner back, the Magic are proceeding on the side of caution, even as he\u2019s ramped up on the practice court. Orlando hosts Atlanta<\/a> on the second night of a back-to-back Wednesday at Kia Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make sure that we\u2019re covering every aspect that we can,\u201d Mosley said.<\/p>\n

Wagner isn\u2019t the only member of the Magic who\u2019s dealing with a prolonged injury. Anthony Black<\/a> (left lateral abdominal strain) missed his 13th game in a row Tuesday while Jonathan Isaac<\/a> (left knee sprain) his 10th straight.<\/p>\n

While Isaac has dealt with his fair share of injuries throughout his time in Orlando, Black has not.<\/p>\n

As a rookie, he was a healthy scratch 13 times and last season only missed four total games (three due to injury). Before a right quad bruise forced him to miss two games at the start of March this season, Black had appeared in the first 58 games of the year.<\/p>\n

Then he suffered the abdominal strain early in a March 7 game at Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it\u2019s my first time I\u2019ve really injured a muscle,\u201d Black told the Sentinel in the locker room before the Magic played at Toronto<\/a> on Sunday. \u201cSo, (I\u2019m) just figuring out how to deal with the injury, giving it the appropriate rest. Just going through different things in the weight room, different rehab things trying to get it back to 100% was all new for me, and I\u2019m glad I went through it and am going through it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Black, who was seen going through various on-court drills at Tuesday shootaround, didn\u2019t share an exact timeline for his return when asked about it on the road.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m feeling a lot better,\u201d he said. \u201cI think we\u2019re just trying to see what I can do now, what my body feels comfortable and confident in doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Isaac also continued to go through on-court drills Tuesday that included running back and forth and working on his hand-eye coordination while wearing a knee brace.<\/p>\n

While the rest of the team would like to have all three of Wagner, Black and Isaac back as soon as they can return to help Orlando make a postseason push, the Magic are also aware they can\u2019t bank on it happening.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re doing all they can to get back,\u201d Magic guard Jalen Suggs said. \u201cWe\u2019re not rushing them because we want their bodies to be well throughout the rest of their lives. But in the same breath, we\u2019ve got to do all we can with the unit that we have cause we have more than enough to go out and get it done and play the way that needs to be played to be competitive in these games and go win.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile they\u2019re doing their work, we\u2019ve got to take care of ours.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Up next \u2026<\/p>\n

Magic vs. Hawks<\/p>\n

When: 7 p.m., Wednesday, Kia Center<\/p>\n

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