ORLANDO, Fla. — The Orlando Magic will attempt to bounce back from a heartbreaking 111-107 loss to Atlanta on Friday when they host the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night, but they’ll do so without guard Jalen Suggs.
Suggs, who missed the final 35 games last season with a knee injury, is being held out as part of a planned rest strategy on the second night of back-to-back games. The decision comes despite strong early performances: 14 points in 17 minutes Wednesday and 11 points in 19 minutes Friday night.
“I tell him all the time: He’s the heart and soul of this thing,” Magic newcomer Desmond Bane told reporters. “Without him, we’ll still be a good ballclub, but he’s a guy that really puts us over the top.”
The Magic squandered a 12-point lead in the final nine minutes against the Hawks, unable to replicate the comeback magic they displayed in their 125-121 season-opening win over Miami.
Bane, acquired to address Orlando’s league-worst 3-point shooting from last season, has mirrored the team’s inconsistency. He hit three of six attempts from deep in a 23-point debut but managed just one of seven against Atlanta.
Meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls enter Saturday’s game having not played since Wednesday’s 115-111 home victory over the Detroit Pistons. Center Nikola Vucevic, who spent nine seasons in Orlando before a 2021 trade, dominated with 28 points and 14 rebounds in that opener.
The 35-year-old Vucevic transformed into a 3-point threat during his Magic tenure, evolving from zero makes in his first two Orlando seasons to 117 in just 44 games in 2020-21. That blockbuster trade brought Orlando two players—including current Magic starter Wendell Carter Jr.—and two first-round picks that became Franz Wagner and Jett Howard.
“I don’t think I’ve shown any signs of slowing down or anything,” Vucevic joked with reporters Wednesday.
Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Kia Center, where the Magic hope familiarity breeds contempt against their former cornerstone.