“Still Have Hope”: Orlando Magic Youngster Jonathan Isaac Opens Up About His Tearful ACL Injury

The Orlando Magic made it past the seeding games in the NBA’s restart but were knocked out in the first round of the playoffs. 23-year-old Jonathan Isaac, who was having a good season up until that point, suffered a torn ACL and a torn meniscus during the Magic’s second seeding game. 

The youngster suffered a gruesome injury while driving to the basket and immediately had to be taken off. An ACL tear is an extremely tough period to recover from. There are several procedures in place as part of the rehab process. Isaac is confident about returning to the court and is content about healing his ligament the right way.

“This is just what I have to do for now, but there will come a time when I play again,” said Isaac in an interview with ‘The Athletic.’ People were fuming at Isaac after he injured his ACL, as they felt he returned too early to the league after enduring a serious knee injury early in the year. 

However, the 23-year-old has a solid response to those questions. The injury however happened at a very unfortunate time, as Isaac was just finding his form after his initial comeback. But the horrific landing on his left leg left a lot of Magic fans gasping for their breath. 

The Orlando Magic youngster has complete faith in his recovery process

Suffering a gruesome injury takes a huge toll on both one’s physical and mental health. It takes a lot of mental courage for an athlete to get past a horrific injury like an ACL tear. 

The rehab is slow and dreadful, but Jonathan Isaac is a complete believer in the process. “I still have hope — I still have a purpose. I still have a job that I go to and take care of business. But it’s definitely been my faith that has kept me encouraged and kept me going and the people that I’ve surrounded myself with and keep me lifted up,” Isaac said. 

Isaac has been with the Orlando Magic since 2017, after he was picked sixth overall in the draft. The 7’1” forward was having was a breakthrough year in the previous season, but the injury has put a major halt to his promising career. Isaac won’t return to the roster till the 2021/22 season owing to the gravity of the injury.

“It’s been swift. I really have no complaints about my rehab process. I feel like my rehab process so far — and I know I still have so much to go — has been second to none in terms of getting through it and my mindset in just getting through it — I haven’t been down,” Isaac mentioned. 

Isaac’s confirmed to sit out the entire 2020/21 NBA season to heal his ACL. However, it is brilliant to see the youngster in such high spirits when he’s enduring a season-ending injury. We hope he gets back to full fitness soon and returns with all his talent to the court.