As Orlando Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman addressed the media following the team's relatively inactive trade deadline, he kept coming back to one notion that has defined this season.
The Magic simply have not seen their starting lineup play together at all. Not in the last two years, at least, thanks to injuries to Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs.
The Magic's opening night starting lineup has a +18.0 net rating (122.6 offensive rating and 104.6 defensive rating) in 117 minutes. That is the fifth-best lineup that has played at least 100 minutes.
It just has not played nearly enough.
And so Weltman felt like he could not make any major trades to fix the team's disappointing season. All the signs pointed to the team being fine -- or at least closer to what they envisioned -- when they were healthy.
That all seems to rest on Franz Wagner returning to the court. That was something Weltman said was coming very soon.
That very soon may end up being Monday.
The Orlando Magic upgraded Franz Wagner to QUESTIONABLE for the game against the Milwaukee Bucks. For the first time in a very long time, the Magic will get the chance to realize their full potential.
"That's my hope for sure [to be back before All-Star Break]," Wagner said in the locker room before Saturday's win over the Utah Jazz. "I think I had two good workouts today and the other gameday. Really just seeing how my foot responds to that."
There is not much practice time to get him onto the court with teammates and players. And the Magic are desperate for wins to keep up in a tightening Eastern Conference playoff race. Every other team has seemingly found its form while the Magic struggle around .500.
Getting Wagner back is essential. The Magic are eager to see their team at full strength at long last.
Franz Wagner has been on a long and winding road
It has been a long and winding journey for Franz Wagner to return from the high ankle sprain he suffered on Dec. 7.
He initially missed 16 games, returning for the team's win over the Memphis Grizzlies in his hometown of Berlin, Germany. Wagner played both games during the team's trip to Europe.
But Wagner admitted a week later that he perhaps returned from his injury too soon. He experienced discomfort during the game in London. It did not subside as the team returned home and prepared for the rest of its schedule.
The Magic had to stop him and shut him back down, causing him to miss the last nine games in a frustrating reset.
"When you get back end of rehabilitation periods, it's the trickiest part," Jeff Weltman said after the trade deadline Thursday. "Then it's more about how am I feeling? You don't really know until you take that leap. I don't think wild horses could have kept Franz Wagner from playing in Berlin. I think Franz felt he was ready to play. He did OK. I think he probably had adrenaline coming from his ears. And the next game in England, less so. And he probably was like maybe I wasn't all the way there."
At least in front of the media, Wagner has spent most of his time in the weight room working on his own with movement exercises and doing on-court work separately from the rest of the team. It seems like his return is coming soon regardless of whether he plays Monday or not.
The focus is making sure he can help for the rest of the season. That means getting through this last bit of reconditioning and making sure he is all the way back so there are no further false starts.
If there is one thing everyone knows is that it has killed Wagner to miss these games and he is eager to play again.
"Honestly, checking all the boxes and all the movements I've got to do in a game," Wagner said of what he needs to do to return to the court. "Being OK with a little bit of pain, but obviously gauging it should never be too much, and it shouldn't get worse after a workout and the rest of the day."
Turning point in the season
The Orlando Magic certainly need Franz Wagner on the court. The team has fallen apart since he left the lineup on Dec. 7.
Orlando went from 14-10 with a 115.7 offensive rating (11th in the league) and 111.8 defensive rating (fifth in the league) before Wagner's injury to 13-14 with a 111.4 offensive rating (26th in the league) and a 116.1 defensive rating (20th in the league).
Wagner will not fix all of those things on his own, but it is clear how much better the Magic play with him on the floor and how vital it is to have all of their players healthy together.
When the Magic have their core three players in Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs, the team has a +14.4 net rating (121.7 ofensive rating/107.2 defensive rating) in 128 minutes, according to DataBallr.
The Magic have had a tough time finding combinations that work absent all of those players together. That has been a problem as much as anything else. But the Magic have a clear impact with Wagner on the floor.
The Magic are still trying to put all of those puzzle pieces together.
But first, they need to get Wagner up and running. It will take a little while for that to happen.
Jamahl Mosley warned that when Franz Wagner first returned, it might be a little clunky. There will surely be some growing pains to get him reintegrated. There will obviously be a minute restriction.
The question is whether it will happen now or wait until after the All-Star Break for that final push to end the season.
"There has been a lot of discussion," Mosley said after shootaround Saturday. "It's going to depend on how he responds to treatment. [In an] ideal world, you always want a guy back sooner. The smart thing to do is to understand exactly how he is responding to everything and play for the long game as well."