The Orlando Magic's rallying cry throughout the entirety of last season was that they just needed to be healthy to showcase how good they could be. Simply having Franz Wagner on the floor was going to be enough to unlock so many things about this Magic team.
There was no arguing that point.
Franz Wagner's return in the Playoffs gave the team an excellent defender to throw at Cade Cunningham. It gave them a huge advantage, and the Magic took a 3-1 series lead with Wagner in the lineup. His injury was a major turning point in the series.
While Wagner was still a big factor offensively, it was clear he was not operating on all cylinders.
After he returned from his high ankle sprain on April 1, he averaged 17.2 points per game in the six appearances he made before the Playoffs began. Wagner was still getting his feet under him even when the Playoffs began.
While that injury return was a big storyline to end the season, it was not the only one.
Another key player was also working his way back from injury and struggling to find his footing as the Playoffs began.
Anthony Black had a breakout season -- one that has garnered him enough buzz for an intriguing extension this summer. But his season ended with a whimper.
He missed a month of the season in March, returning for the last four games before the Playoffs. All of those games had some element where their opponents were not competitive to some degree.
Black did not have the finish to a breakout season he would have wanted, nor the Playoffs he hoped for.
Black was a key player in keeping the Magic alive throughout the season. And as the playoffs began, he too was playing while recovering from an injury. He was not at full speed.
What does this team look like with a healthy Anthony Black? Would they have fared better in Games 5-7 with Black running on all cylinders?
His injury played as big a role as Franz Wagner's injury in the end.
Black's breakout season
Injuries are always opportunity. Anthony Black was already breaking out when Franz Wagner went down with his high ankle sprain. But with Paolo Banchero recovering from a strained groin muscle, Anthony Black stepped into the vacuum and carried the team.
He averaged a career-high 15.0 points per game and shot 44.7 percent from the floor, a career best.
In the time between Banchero's injury on Nov. 12 (including that game) and Wagner's return in Berlin (a major moment for Black where he dunked on four players to break a tie with two minutes remaining), Black averaged 17.6 points per game and shot 46.8 percent from the floor and 36.4 percent from three in 29 games.
The Magic would not have remained in the fight for the Playoffs without Black's breakthrough. And while there is a lot of conversation about what the Magic need from their two stars, Black is as big a piece for them.
Black's sudden surge of offensive confidence was needed for a team that was missing one of its key offensive players throughout the season.
A player on a rookie contract breaking out into a major role is something essential when the team is fully immersed in the tax and the apron. He has set himself up for a major extension this offseason or next. Black is a critical part.
Like Franz Wagner trying to ramp up before the Playoffs began, Anthony Black was also ramping himself up to get ready for the Playoffs.
For as good as he was throughout the season, he was clearly missing a step when he returned.
Black suffered a strained abdominal muscle early in the March 7 game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. That was just his second game back after missing a pair of games. Black missed the entire six-game losing streak -- he was injured in the middle of the seven-game win streak.
Black returned a month later and played the final four games of the season. He averaged only 10.5 points per game and shot 36.1 percent from the floor. And this was against teams that were sitting starters ahead of the end of the season. He scored in double figures just twice.
He was clearly not operating at full tilt in the Playoffs. His numbers reflect that.
Black averaged only 8.6 points per game and shot 37.0 percent from the floor. He scored in double figures just two times -- a breakout 19-point, 4-for-6 3-point shooting showing in Game 5 and an 11-point showing in Game 7. Black never had a positive plus/minus in any game during the Playoffs -- including -19 in the Game 4 win and -12 in the Game 6 collapse.
That is a big piece of the puzzle missing for the Magic. Black is someone who has a big role to play for this team. And in the Playoffs, he was not at full speed.
Playing with a watered-down Black is not playing with one hand tied behind their back. But with Wagner also recovering from injury, the Magic had a few fingers taped together. It clearly affected them.
A big role to play
Injuries are a part of the game. Inevitably, someone will get hurt throughout the course of a season. Every team needs role players to step up.
That is what was so enticing about Anthony Black and his 2026 season. He truly stepped up.
The Orlando Magic likely view him as a sixth man at minimum this year -- Black is running third on the odds to win Sixth Man of the Year according to FanDuel Sportsbook. He will be someone expected to step into the starting lineup if and when a player goes down with an injury.
Anthony Black might be in the running to make Jalen Suggs expendable as the Magic begin to consider the ramifications of being a first- and nearly a second-apron team. Black figures into a lot of the conversations.
And that is all assuming he gets his extension before the October deadline.
But most immediately, he will represent another offensive engine off a bench that ranked near the bottom of the league. He and Nikola Vucevic will likely provide most of the scoring off the bench. They will be essential to the Magic trying to accomplish their goals.
Black has a big role to play this season. And the plain truth is that he did not get to put his best foot forward in the Playoffs.
As much as the Magic felt Franz Wagner's absence. They felt Anthony Black's absence too.
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