Franz Wagner is a future star. The Magic firmly believe that. Otherwise, they would not have given him a max extension. Last season was overall a success for Wagner, as he averaged career-highs in points, rebounds, assists, and steals per game. He was also a big reason why the Magic got to the playoffs in the first place.
His shooting was a problem, however. After shooting 35.4 and 36.1 percent from three in his first two seasons, his shooting percentage plummeted to 28.1 percent on essentially the same volume as in the previous season.
Floor spacing was a huge issue for the Magic last season, and Wagner's struggles certainly factored into that. Given that he shot reasonably well in his first two NBA seasons, this seems to be an outlier. Now, he is displaying the same shooting struggles with the German national team during preparations for the Olympics, however.
Wagner is still struggling with his 3-point shot
Team Germany is going into this year's Olympics as the reigning world champion, looking to defend that crown in Paris. They have plenty of NBA-level talent, and Dennis Schröder always takes his game to another level on the national stage.
The German national team might be one of the biggest threats to Team USA this year alongside Canada and France. Germany has played three exhibition games so far to prepare for the Olympics and only lost one. Franz and Moritz Wagner had to miss the first game against France because their new contracts with the Magic weren't signed just yet.
Since then, Team Germany has beaten France and the Netherlands despite Franz Wagner's poor shooting from three. Against France, he made 7 of his 10 two-point attempts but missed both of the threes he took. Against the Netherlands, he missed all five of his three-point attempts.
This is definitely concerning. The Magic are simply a better team if Wagner can knock down some threes and help space the floor, but the offseason is not over yet. It is still a long way until the NBA season kicks off, and hopefully, the Olympics will offer Wagner a chance to work through his shooting struggles and return to Orlando in top form.
Next, Germany will face Japan and the USA, giving us more chances to see the Wagner brothers in action.