Orlando center Moritz Wagner will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL in his left knee, that news coming to the injury-riddled Magic one day after they pulled off one of the more improbable wins in franchise history.
Wagner underwent an MRI exam on Sunday to confirm the tear. He will require surgery and then a recovery period of several months.
He was injured in Orlando’s 121-114 win over the Miami Heat on Saturday night, a game where the Magic rallied from a 22-point deficit to start the fourth quarter and tied a franchise record by erasing what at one point was a 25-point hole.
It is the latest and most severe addition to a long list of significant injuries for the Magic this season. Orlando has been without All-Star forward Paolo Banchero for the last 25 of its 30 games because of a torn oblique, and forward Franz Wagner — Moritz’s brother, someone who was well on his way to an All-Star nod this season before getting hurt — has missed the last five games with a torn oblique as well.
Banchero is nearing a return. Franz Wagner will likely miss at least a few more weeks. The Magic have survived it all, getting off to an 18-12 start that has them fourth in the Eastern Conference.
Moritz Wagner was hurt with 2:33 left in the first quarter of Saturday’s game against the Heat, on a non-contact play. He dribbled into the lane, attempted to stop about 8 feet from the basket and his left knee gave out. He immediately fell, grabbing the front of the knee and writhing for a few moments.
The Magic wound up trailing by 25 in the second quarter, were still down by 22 going into the fourth and pulled off a huge rally — outscoring Miami 37-8 in the fourth for a 121-114 win. It matched the seventh-largest comeback to start a fourth quarter in NBA history, and came with the Magic playing without Banchero, both Wagner brothers, point guard Jalen Suggs (ankle) and backup guard Gary Harris (hamstring).
“We talked about making sure that we’re lifting our brother up in Moe Wagner. That was a big portion of it,” an emotional Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said after the game. “But again, it’s a group that just continues to fight and they continue to scrap. They continue to go no matter what’s happening.”
Moritz Wagner was one of two players — point guard Anthony Black is the other — to have appeared in all 30 of Orlando’s games to this point this season. He was averaging a career-best 12.9 points this season, along with 4.9 rebounds in about 19 minutes per game.
Moritz Wagner has also represented Germany in the past two Olympics at Tokyo and Paris, and — along with his brother — helped his homeland win the Basketball World Cup at Manila in 2023.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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