After the Orlando Magic finished their practice Monday, Anthony Black got to work.
He had a brief interlude to talk to the media, but then it was back on the court, working with an entire crew of coaches and support staff who ran him through pick-and-roll shell drills and defensive closeout drills. There was surely plenty more before he finished his day.
Black has a lot to catch up on, it seems. And he has to get himself up to speed as the Magic begin the wave of games in their preseason schedule.
Black has been held out of the Magic's early practices after suffering a minor sprained ankle in the voluntary workouts. He is starting to ramp up again and play more. The team hopes he will be doing more on Tuesday ahead of Wednesday's preseason opener.
Just like everything else in this training camp, there is clear intention: The Magic want to nip any minor injuries early in camp rather than have them linger throughout the season.
"I think that's the balance you are always trying to find," coach Sean Sweeney said after practice Monday. "Just in general, for us, we want to think health first, conditioning second and skill development/acquisition third. These guys, if they do need to get healthy, we want to get them healthy first, and then we want to get them in great shape so when they are out there, they can do a great job executing."
Sweeney said Black looks good as he returns to the court. He said he had a good burst as he went live more on Monday after returning to the fold on Sunday.
Black is not the only one back on the floor. Noah Penda finished practice playing three-on-three with the Magic's training camp invitees. He was dealing with a sore hamstring. But he has started to ramp up and return to the court too.
Jonathan Isaac has been practicing throughout training camp while managing a sprained knee. Jalen Suggs was limited in practice Sunday and Monday due to an illness. He was not able to do much, Sweeney said. But Sweeney said that things are trending up for Suggs to do more on Tuesday.
There is a lot the Magic are trying to accomplish in camp. But health is clearly a priority after an injury filled-couple of seasons.
Learning while healing
Injuries were the story for the Orlando Magic last year.
They saw several key players miss long stretches of time -- whether it was the month Paolo Banchero missed with a strained groin, Franz Wagner being limited to 34 total games with a high ankle sprain or Anthony Black's strained oblique that cost him virtually the entire last month of the season.
Orlando could not avoid injuries. It was the same story in the 2025 season when strained obliques slowed down Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, and a nagging injury ended Jalen Suggs' season in February.
The Magic are clearly focused on avoiding any issues early in the season that could linger into the regular season. They want to start the season off with a clean bill of health.
But that is the tricky balance. The Magic are also teaching a new offensive and defensive system. There is a lot to learn, and the best way to cement habits and a foundation is truly through playing on the court.
That is something Black is missing. He has to sit and watch and learn from the sidelines.
But he is still abosrbing what the coaching staff is teaching and engaging with the process.
"I think I still learned a lot being hurt," Black said after practice Monday. "We were here early, so I kind of know what I'm supposed to do. It's just now getting those reps, getting to the spots, knowing when to communicate and what to communicate."
Sweeney said assistant coach Ben Johnson has done a good job keeping Anthony Black engaged and asking him questions to make sure he understands what is being instructed, even if he cannot go through with it.
Sweeney said Black has done a good job paying attention and staying engaged. Lots of players have done a good job asking questions and staying attentive when they are not directly involved in a drill. It is part of the encouraging signs during camp and the air of seriousness and intention that this camp has brought.
It also helps that many of the Magic's players, including Black, returned to Orlando early for voluntary workouts. They, at least, had some idea of what Sweeney was looking for before training camp started.
Players like Anthony Black or Noah Penda are not starting completely from scratch.
Still, they have some catching up to do. It seems unlikely that either Black or Penda will play in Wednesday's preseason opener against the Memphis Grizzlies because they are still ramping up from their injuries.
As much as a player can learn from the sideline, the best reps come from playing at game speed. That is where both Black and Penda are working toward.
The Magic's approach at this point is not to rush things and make sure players are feeling good for the games that matter.
The focus for the Magic is clearly on getting them ready for the regular season. And there is still time to get their work in.
Add us as a preferred source on Google