It’s tough to be an Orlando Magic fan right now. It must be infuriating, to say the least. The Florida side had all the space and purse to accommodate a big name during the 2024 off-season. But they trusted their inexperienced core and boldly entered the season. After 5 games, they lost their cornerstone, Paolo Banchero, with a torn oblique. While the star forward is yet to return, the team’s current offense leader, Franz Wagner, suffered a scaringly similar unfortunate fate.

On October 30, the former #1 pick played his last regular season game before tearing his oblique and the team sidelined him, stating that he would be re-evaluated after 4-6 weeks. Banchero averaged 29.0 points with 8.8 rebounds during his short stint. Following that, the team lost 4 games in a row under Wagner’s offensive leadership. While it looked like the team would settle and surface at the bottom, the German forward sparked a magnificent comeback.

Franz Wagner, with a commanding average of 24.4 ppg and consistent support from teammates, took Orlando to the third seed with a 16-9 record. Unfortunately, amid this promising situation, Shams Charania has announced, “Just in: Orlando Magic star forward Franz Wagner has suffered a torn right oblique and is out indefinitely, sources tell ESPN. Wagner sustained the injury Friday night and will be re-evaluated in four weeks.”

Notably, there isn’t clarity on whether he sustained the injury during the Sixers’ game. He had played 38 minutes, scoring 30 points. So, the Magic is in a tough spot until Paolo Banchero returns to full fitness. Let’s find out what fans say about the grave situation.

Fans’ hope fades away after the devastating Franz Wagner update: “Season over?”

The moment everyone heard the Franz Wagner update, almost every fan wanted to know about Paolo Banchero’s return!

A fan perfectly summed up the emotion, writing, “That’s wild prayers up for him, when is Paolo coming back ?” Well, in short, PB is quite far from returning to the floor. But there’s indeed a positive update.

On November 27, the star engaged in light stretching activity on the court, for the first time since his injury. He said, “I’m feeling good, man… I finally got to do some court stuff on this trip at practice.” So, we might see him in action in a few weeks. As a follow-up question, another fan asked, “Season over?” It is quite natural to have this feeling after the team loses two of its best players.

However, only a quarter of the season has passed, and the team has also secured the third seed. So, they can afford to lose some games before their two stars return to the floor. Especially with Banchero making his way to the team’s fringes in about a month or two.

So, the season is not over yet.

On the other hand, another fan vented out his frustration, writing, “Bro I swear the Magic are cursed. If they have a good roster, something will go wrong.”

Well, the fan isn’t wrong. The term ‘Cursed’ has been associated with the Magic for a very long time. Firstly, fans called them cursed because they somehow managed to lose their talented bigs, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard, to popular teams.

Injuries have always plagued their trusted talents and ultimately cut short their careers. For instance, Tracy McGrady, Grant Hill, and Penny Hardaway. Most recently, Mo Bamba. We hope Banchero and Wagner don’t end up with the same fate.

Another fan captured the Eastern Conference teams’ emotions, writing, “Rest of the east celebrating cause their scared of a healthy Franz and Paolo.” While we aren’t sure whether they were scared of the star duo, the Orlando Magic indeed had the potential to contend for the title in the East, considering their super-talented roster.

Speaking of this, a fan wrote, “Heal up This Orlando team has a lot of potential when healthy.” Can the rest of the roster hold the fort until the duo returns? Let us know in the comments.