Jalen Suggs is on the doorstep of returning for the Magic, and the guard sounded ready to go after missing the last eight games with a bone bruise in his right knee.
After shootaround ahead of Orlando’s NBA Cup matchup with the Bucks, Suggs made it clear he believes he can play again.
“Yeah, I’m good,” he said inside the AdventHealth Training Center when the Orlando Sentinel asked him if he’ll be able to face Milwaukee.
Even with that confidence, Suggs was still listed as questionable on the team’s injury report at noon. Magic coach Sean Sweeney said Suggs went through shootaround and the team will check in on him later before deciding whether he suits up.
Sweeney gave the same kind of update on forwards Tristan da Silva and Jamal Cain. Da Silva is dealing with a left calf strain, while Cain has a left shoulder contusion. Both players were part of shootaround and both remained questionable.
“Like everything for us, first is your health,” Sweeney said. “Once you’re healthy, then it’s, ‘Are you in condition to do what you need to do on the court?’ And if those two boxes are checked, then we want you to go play basketball as well as you can.”
Suggs hurt his knee on Oct. 25 at New York and has watched Orlando go 3-5 without him. That stretch has also come with the absence of star forward Paolo Banchero, who is dealing with a right high ankle sprain, along with several other missing players.
Before the injury, Suggs had been giving the Magic solid production in three games, averaging 8 points, 5.7 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals in 33.4 minutes per night.
“I’ve just been in here working,” Suggs said about his time away. “I’ve been taking time to process the game, watch, make sure I’m applying everything I’m seeing, taking time to chop it up with the coaches and still stay involved while I’m handling my business. So, it’s been all the same work.”
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