Two NBA play-in tournament hopefuls in their respective conferences will duke it out on Saturday night in the form of the 36-37 Sacramento Kings, the Western Conference’s No. 9 seed, and the 35-39 Orlando Magic, the No. 8 seed in the East.
Orlando, however, could be missing some critical bodies.
The Magic have been limping towards the postseason ever since their two best players, forwards Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, went down with torn right obliques early into the 2024-25 season.
The ailment cost Banchero 34 straight games, while Wagner missed 20. Both are now back, but Orlando has struggled to find a rhythm since that dynamic duo initially went down.
Per a recent league injury report, bench Magic point guard Cole Anthony was considered doubtful to suit up as he grapples with a strained left big toe.
All-Defensive Team point guard Jalen Suggs, the nominal starter at the position, has already been ruled out for the season while he recuperates from an arthroscopic surgery earlier this month to repair a left knee trochlea cartilage tear.
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The 6-foot-5 pro was in the midst of a career season.
Backup floor-spacing center Moritz Wagner, Franz’s big brother, already saw what was looking like a career year in Orlando get sidetracked by a season-ending ACL tear in his left knee, just 30 games into his season.
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Two-way players Mac McClung and Ethan Thompson are with Orlando’s G League affiliate squad, the Osceola Magic.
McClung is coming off a historically great game for Osceola.
He scored a franchise-record 46 points on 16-of-25 shooting from the field (6-of-9 from long range), pulled down five rebounds, and dished out five assists during a 124-122 Osceola Magic overtime victory against the New Orleans Pelicans’ NBAGL team, the Birmingham Squadron, on Friday night.
Birmingham will get its shot at vengeance immediately. The two teams will face off again on Saturday night at 7 p.m. ET.
The Magic announced Anthony’s final status for the Kings clash. He will sit out, after all.
Cole Anthony (toe) ruled out Saturday.
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) March 29, 2025
Anthony, 24, has been a solid reserve scorer with the club this year. In his 61 available bouts, the 6-foot-1 pro is averaging 9.6 points while slashing .423/.349/.821, along with 3.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 0.7 steals per bout.
The 23-year-old Suggs finishes his season with career-best averages of 16.2 points on .410/.314/.882 shooting splits, 4.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.6 steals, and 0.9 blocks in just 35 healthy contests.
More Orlando Magic News:
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Magic Predicted to Land $33M Star Guard to Bolster Playoff Push
Magic Land $29M Star to Bolster Playoff Chances in Massive Trade Proposal
For more Orlando Magic news and rumors, stay tuned to Newsweek Sports.
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