3 reasonable expectations for the Orlando Magic next season

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3 reasonable expectations for the Orlando Magic

2. A healthy season for the young guys

It would be unreasonable for any fan to expect their team to stay healthy for the entire season.

But for Magic fans, it is time to make an exception. Or it’s at least time to bend the rules a bit for this list.

In franchise-curse-type fashion, almost every young player for the Magic has gotten injured and missed significant playing time.

For a team to truly develop, either those players will have to stay healthy, or they need to be moved to make space for players that play consistently.

With that being said, Magic fans should want to see everybody healthy because it feels like they are due for some better injury luck after the last two seasons. But more importantly, they should expect that the organization, even if players get hurt again, can figure out who are the guys because they cannot keep waiting around during this rebuild.

Markelle Fultz has played 26 games in the last two seasons after getting hurt six games into the 2021 season and sitting out until the All-Star Break in 2022. He has played just one full season in his career. There is still a lot unproven.

But he will probably begin the year in the starting lineup. He makes that big of an impact. And this will be his first healthy offseason to make some real growth in his game. But he still has to make it through the 82-game gauntlet.

If he misses any more games due to a major injury, then Cole Anthony and Jalen Suggs should get more of the ball-handling duties. If Fultz cannot stay on the court in his sixth year, then that move has failed. Or at least the Magic have to start considering their options at point guard as they look to move to their next phase.

There have been players throughout the roster with chronic nagging injuries. Jonathan Isaac has missed the last two seasons recovering from a torn ACL. Mo Bamba finally missed fewer than 20 games this past year for the first time in his career. Wendell Carter played a career-best 62 games. There is still at least a feeling the Magic will have to cover 15-20 games where Carer is out.

Both Bamba and Isaac are sort of the wild cards on the team. We have seen flashes from both but each of them has struggled with staying healthy and having consistent progression.

Because of this, they are on short leashes. Orlando has ways to get out of both contracts if it is clear they cannot stay on the floor or prouce. The Magic though can give them or other chronically injured players the chance to recover. But that time is running out.

Similarly, Suggs only played 48 games himself in his rookie season, last year.

It is by no means time to move on. But a decision might have to be made about who is valued more between him or Cole Anthony. And that could come down to health.

The Magic are going to have to make decisions about their roster very soon. That increases some pressure on this season.

The list of injured guys with questions could go on forever so to save some time it stops here.

But Magic fans know, they have waited long enough to figure out how good some of these guys can be.

At a certain point, you have to cut your losses and realize a player might never reach the potential they were thought to have.

So this year, it is reasonable to expect for some of those guys to stay healthy. And it is reasonable to expect that if they do not, then it is time to reevaluate who is a part of the future.