Banchero and Isaac fighting illnesses
It’s been nearly fourth months since the Magic defeated the Jazz on the road in the fifth game of the regular season in early November.
In that contest that Orlando won by two points, guard Anthony Black saw significant minutes (15) for the first time during his rookie campaign, forward Paolo Banchero notched his first 30-plus point game of the season and center Wendell Carter Jr. fractured his left hand near the end of the game.
A lot has changed ahead of tonight’s second and final meeting this year between the Magic and the Jazz at Kia Center (Bally Sports Florida, 7).
Black has gone on to make 31 starts in 54 games played, Banchero has scored 30-plus points eight more times and Carter has fully recovered from both a hand and later knee injury that sidelined him for 26 contests while he’s returned to form as of late (12.7 points, 6.5 rebounds in last 15).
“It’s a great reflection to go back and look at exactly what we did vs. them the first time,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said this week. “Our poise, our maturity level, our ability to understand the moment — that’s what’s grown.”
Entering Wednesday’s games, the Magic (33-26) were in seventh place in the East (the top spot in the NBA Play-In tournament) with 23 contests remaining in the regular season.
Orlando, which holds the head-to-head tiebreaker with the eighth-seeded Pacers (33-26), is a half-game back of the sixthseeded 76ers (33-25) and the fifth-seeded Heat (33-25).
Utah (27-32) found itself 4 games behind the Lakers (31-28), who sit in 10th in the West — the last spot to make the Play-In.
Ahead of the NBA trade deadline earlier this month, the Jazz sent Simone Fontecchio to the Pistons for Kevin Knox (whom they later waived), a 2024 second-round pick and the draft rights to Gabriele Procida, a 2022 draftee who was stashed in Europe.
In a separate trade, Utah acquired Otto Porter Jr., Kira Lewis Jr. and 2024 first-round
pick from the Raptors in exchange for Kelly Olynyk and Ochai Agbaji. Porter, who has yet to play for the Jazz, remains away from the team as he considers his options for the rest of the season.
According to The Athletic, Utah is reportedly willing to negotiate a buyout with Porter ahead of March 1 to make him eligible for the playoffs with another organization in order to give more minutes to rookie Taylor Hendricks, a UCF product who became the school’s first “one-anddone” prospect.
As Hendricks makes his return to Orlando, the Magic are aiming to get two key players back on the court.
First-time All-Star Banchero (illness) and forward Jonathan Isaac (illness) both are listed as questionable.
Banchero has missed two games in a row while battling an illness since he returned from the All-Star break. The Magic split the pair of games without Banchero, falling on the road at Atlanta on Sunday and defeating the Nets at home Tuesday.
Isaac’s illness, however, is a new development.
He wasn’t available against Brooklyn due to a left knee strain suffered at Atlanta and had said this week that today was the likely focus for a return. That was before getting sick.
For Utah, center Walker Kessler (right foot sprain) is questionable.