It’s been a frustrating stretch for Magic guard Jalen Suggs. He missed 10 games due to a low back strain and has now missed another eight games due to a left thigh contusion. Suggs has still only done non-contact work since his latest injury. Even if he’s able to return for Orlando’s last game before the All-Star break on Wednesday, Suggs will be on a minutes restriction.
“It’s just very important that we keep understanding that everyone’s body is different [and] how they respond to treatment is different,” head coach Jamahl Mosley told Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel. “We’re going to make sure he’s taken care of the right way and understand exactly how we integrate guys back because this is for the long haul.”
The Magic have gone 5-14 over their past 19 games. Their overall defensive rating of 109.0 still ranks third in the league, but it was at 106.4 prior to Suggs’ first 10-game absence and has has been just 113.9 (14th) during that 19-game span without him.
“Jalen is a huge piece for us in what he does and his energy and his enthusiasm — same as Moe Wagner (who is out for the season),” Mosley said. “You can’t replace those pieces whether you try to or not. To put the weight of the entire defense on a young man and what he provides, it’s tough to do.”
We have more from the Southeast Division:
- Andrew Wiggins‘ Heat debut didn’t go well. He shot 3-of-12 shooting from the field while scoring 11 points in 30 minutes against Boston on Monday. Wiggins, acquired from Golden State in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster, wasn’t fazed and knows an adjustment period will be necessary. “That’s the NBA for you,” he said, per Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “It’s never going to be easy. Every game is going to be a dog fight, every game is important, especially for this team. I’m learning my way through. But at the end of the day, it’s basketball. I’ve been playing it since I was a kid. So I think I’ll be fine.”
- The Heat will play a preseason game in Puerto Rico this fall, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. It will be the team’s seventh exhibition in Puerto Rico over the team’s 38 seasons but their first since 2006.
- Veteran big man Larry Nance Jr. would likely draw a lot of interest in the buyout market but The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie doubts that Nance and the Hawks will pursue that avenue. League sources tell Vecenie that Atlanta coach Quin Snyder is a big fan of the 32-year-old, who has been in the Hawks’ rotation since returning last month from hand surgery. Nance will sit out Wednesday’s game due to a knee injury.
Heat fanbase about to show just how soft Dub Nation is about Wiggins, lol
I kept telling yall, Wiggs was no one’s pet project, he was just the only guy available for D’Angelo Russell. All NBA teams need a stretch wing or three, so Wiggs was that. But the entire time, he was always “just a guy”, he never deserved that All-star selection, that was more about him playing on a superior team than anything – if that wasnt true, then GSW would have been better the last 3 years. Wiggins makes 20-25 PPG money to put up 15-17. He’s -that- guy. Not an awful player, he still will get you 15-17 PPG and space the floor sometimes, but is in no way, shape or form a star player. Just an overpaid rotation piece.
Wiggs will certainly pull it together in good time.
Hopefully Wiggs’ performance doesn’t continue to be compared to Butler’s on a game-by-game basis, like we’re seen in the Bag Area media today. That’s unfair to Wiggins.
The bay area media is so funny. They praised Wiggins and sad to see him go and a couple of wins against team they should beat all of a sudden its the best team in a long time praise.
arc89 ,
In fairness, Butler has looked really, really good. And, many Bay Area reporters, obviously unfamiliar with Butler, argued that Butler’s stats indicated he was barely better than Wiggins, if at all.
That set up the ongoing head-to-head, which is unfair to a good player (Wiggins) that is nonetheless not in Butler’s class.
It sort of should be a slap to the face of Lacob and how they didn’t go all in on getting a 2nd superstar immediately.
Like, the vibe and results are night and day!
Easier said than done. Teams usually don’t pull the trigger until the deadline nears. Teams want to milk all avenues before they go for it.
dezpoo , “slap in the face”, really?
Lacob and MJD aimed to make a huge upgrade at one position while keeping the rest intact. Going “all in” upgrades one position while giving up other capability.
Give Lacob and MJD credit for not “going all in” on Paul George and/or Lauri Markkanen this past summer. If they had, not only would we have had underperforming and overpaid starters, but a bleak future to look forward to.
And everyone guaranteeing Butler wasn’t worth the relatively modest price paid for him is delusional.
If you get a relatively healthy Butler on his best behavior, it’s going to be worth it. If you get a hurt, overpaid, and diva Butler it’s not going to be worth it. That’s just the reality of things.
But given the Warriors position prior, it made sense to take such a swing. Even with some caveats (shooting, defense), no one available had the upside to move the needle as much as he could. Just have to keep your fingers crossed for the next two plus years.
A lot of the conversation around GS fans/people talking about Jimmy seems like they’re surprised for some reason, and it’s really dumbfounding for me…like, I see him as an elite 2 way player
@formerlyz , here’s an explanation for your surprise that Dubs fans don’t seem to know about Butler:
We’re on the West Coast, so we’re much less likely to see the Heat play on television, including in the playoffs. So, to judge the trade, folks looked at Butlers’s stats, incorrectly assuming that those told the whole story.
That’s also why you had so many GSW folks, even some in the media, arguing that Butler isn’t better than Wiggins. That immediately changed after they saw Butler play.
It’s just amazing how many people comment on people they’ve never seen play, based solely on counting stats that don’t matter, that are actually really good anyway…again elite 2 way player. You guys got him for very little…that’s why I was mad initially…but it is what it is….
I don’t think the surprise comes not knowing how good a player Butler is. The surprise comes from how seamlessly he has been able to fit in. He doesn’t know the plays, or the players. You expect adjustments to take some time. His Basketball IQ is making Curry smile again.
Their team is also extremely similar to the one he was just on…but ya, he is an elite 2 way player…adding the right people makes GS really good, if they can. Lineups with GP2, Jimmy, Draymond are going to be really good and disruptive defensively…Jimmy kind of takes on a lot of what they lost with Iguodala, but at a higher level, in some cases, and also can help them in half court situations, and he’s been knocking down shots more often from 3 the last couple of years, even though he mostly just takes good ones, and passes up a lot of shots…GS has always been amazing at getting the ball in the paint, when they’ve been good, and now it’s going to be even easier for them, where Steph Curry will potentially be a big scorer for them around all those facilitators
Also, Butler is really well rested.
Yes, he is !!
Maybe some of that praise you see in the media is driven by Steph Curry. He says Butler is making every possession easier. Teams can’t double or triple team Curry anymore. Butler has drawn defenders to him, and getting fouled. Against the Bucks, he 15 FT, making 12. That is unworldly for the Warriors this season. He is doing this while barely knowing any of the offense. Draymond is coaching him on the floor about where he needs to be. As he gets in shape, and learns the offense, the stretch run could get pretty interesting for the Warriors.
Davey J is right about something. Wiggins is a good player, not great, a solid career. But, he has lived up to the #1 pick status.
Giants74 said:
> But, he has lived up to the #1 pick status.
I have a bridge to sell you.
Wiggins always needs time to build chemistry and get into a rhythm…
Not surprised at all… He’s got all the reasons to have the fire to find his All Star form again now that he’s on a competent organisation that sends primadonnas packing…
You don’t follow basketball much. It took him 7 seasons to find his “All-Star form”, in a Warriors uniform. The Warriors stood behind the past 2 seasons while he was dealing with his father. Sure, he can become an All-Star again. But, it wasn’t the Warriors that held him back.
It’s obvious that you don’t pay much attention to other teams…
The Timberwolves were run by Glen Taylor… It was no different to the process just with random vets… Unprofessional…
Now Wiggins is finally on a professional team that suspends it’s headcases and trades them when they don’t learn… Wiggins will benefit greatly from the discipline that he’s never had…
What? Wiggins is in his 11th season. His best season in his career came playing for an undisciplined, unprofessional organization. So, he obviously benefitted from the culture.
“To my teammates, the coaching staff, the front office, and the incredible fans who have been with me every step of the way thank you from the bottom of my heart. The Bay will always be home.” This what he said about his time in a Warriors uni. He said more about how much it meant to him. But, I guess you know what is best for him. He might disagree.
I was surprised Orlando didn’t consider trading for Jimmy, b/c they had the pieces and the assets to do it straight up, and they would have been really, really good
Wiggins said all the right stuff for sure, but I didn’t really believe him
Aristotle. I made a typo. Oops. If you read the 1st sentence, you would have noticed that I wrote that he was a good player, not great. Clearly I meant to say that he has “not” lived up to the #1 pick. Yes, sadly, I have not reached your superior heights.
Giants74, thanks for letting me know that was a typo.
Frankly, after reading several knowledgeable Dubs posters here argue that Wiggins was as good or better than Butler, that Wiggins was a legitimate #2 to Steph, etc, etc, it didn’t surprise me to see another knowledgeable Dubs poster (such as yourself) say what you did about Wiggins.
Andrew Wiggins seems to have impressed a lot of Dubs fans to a degree that shocks me.
It’s bias against diva behavior imo. We saw the same thing with Kyrie. People saying he wasn’t worth a 1st round pick after the trade.
I get those who wanted to see them fail given their respective antics—I am a fan of neither myself—but front offices are supposed to be impartial and do their best to weigh all relevant factors properly. And I think they were in each case: without the antics both players would have garnered a bigger return. But emotional fans swung the pendulum too far the other way to the point where, suddenly, elite players were essentially worthless. Even with all the other caveats—availability, price, age—there are only so many guys in the game who can do what they do. And some team will always take a chance on that. Hard to blame them when it’s so difficult to pull off trades as it is, not just in terms of available talent but matching contracts, etc.
Shea, that’s an excellent analysis of the fan psychology around these “diva” types like Butler and Kyrie.
It bears mention that both Butler and Kyrie have a side to them that’s very mediagenic (see esp. the TV commercials) and appealing to fans. That’s what fans usually get in the first few years. Hopefully that’s Dubs fans get with Jimmy,
As a Heat fan, despite everything that has happened…Jimmy Butler is still loved, if that answers anything about that. The way he’s acted is the literal opposite of who he has always been. He’s a winner
You are very close to spot on with that…
These diva types like Butler are culture cancers wherever they go…
And as we saw in Brooklyn with KD, Harden and Kyrie, it can be roses one day and divorce the next when you have more than one diva type…
And the Warriors have 2 who are clearly not on Steph’s level who have to fight for that 2nd spot…
Klay being Klay made that easy… Poole and KD were too good and too boastful for Draymond…
You are right; Poole is a diva. Thinks he is a legend despite his obvious shortcomings. Is still learning to sacrifice for the team like Draymond. Steph said it himself. Butler is the compliment to him. He makes the game easier for Curry.
Butler is also a diva…
KD and Poole also worked well with Curry… The problem always was the other diva, Draymond…
Oh Aristotle, I am definitely not the most knowledge Dubs fan. I just question everything to try and learn more.
Steve Kerr alluded to the major difference between Jimmy Butler and Andrew Wiggins.
It’s not stats it’s not scoring. It’s not defense and it’s not all star status. It’s swagger.
You just watch Jimmy out there and he gets the calls and he knows when to hit the deck and take a charge. He just knows what he’s doing out there and a lot of times that doesn’t show up in the stat book.
The way Wiggins approaches the game is he tries to score, or He does his best to defend, and pretty much everything he contributes shows up in the stats and box scores.
Jimmy Butler‘s skills Show up in the win column.
Is it a risk to bring in a guy like that? It sure is but wow the ceiling can be the finals when he puts you on his back.
That ain’t happening with Andrew Wiggins. When he puts you on his back, he tries shooting his way to a win or making stops on a way to a win. But the swagger is not there.
Andrew Wiggins doesn’t know how to spell swagger let alone define it. Remember, he’s “a wonderful human being.”
That Swagger is exactly the problem…
Jimmy Butler is a better player than Dillon Brooks but he’s another happy to be the heel type…
The difference is Dillon is at least respectful towards his own team, whilst Jimmy will do anything to get what he wants… He’s willing to throw the whole season away over the smallest disagreement…
Scarlett, Your opinions in this latest comment is totally off base.
#1 Dillon Brooks is a grunt and a bully who really doesn’t know how to play basketball.
He’s an in your face defensive bulldog and that’s about it. He’s not a very good basketball player.
Jimmy Butler was willing to throw the whole season away over the smallest disagreement? We’re talking millions and millions of dollars !!
That is NOT the smallest disagreement. Why would you think that? That is totally not a smallest disagreement smh.
What Jimmy did was say hey I want an extension, and Miami said no.
So Jimmy said trade me, probably last summer behind closed doors. it looked like Miami was going to play the season out, but Jimmy doubled down and said trade me and trade me now, and forced his way out of town.
No one including me, agrees with his methods, but to Jimmy he did what he needed to do to get traded. it’s actually good for the Miami heat because they can get a return, but if they refuse and time marches on this is going to get ugly because I want out of town and if you don’t trade me, I’ll sit.
This was worth $111 million to Jimmy Butler. The smallest thing Scarlet? I really doubt that you know anything about anything if that is your opinion on $111 million.
And if you do know something, then your bias towards stuff that happened eight years ago is clouding your ability to make rational statements.
The grudge you have for Jimmy over how he screwed the wolves is eight years ago. Get over it.
Plus your dislike for the four-time champion Golden State Warriors is also getting a little old. Your Timberwolves will be just fine. They have a nice team. They have a Young team they’re getting better.
Look to the future and quit pissin an moanin about the past.
Kevin Durant screwed the Warriors, but nobody’s complaining about that are they? Hey we got D’Angelo Russell out of it. I think Miami and Andrew Wiggins is a little better off there.
Look forward and quit looking in the rearview mirror. The windshield is 6 feet across by 4 feet. Use that. That rearview mirror is 6 inches by 2 inchies, you can’t see anything looking at that.
Look forwards to Jimmy being injured?
Check…
Look forwards to Jimmy and Draymond fighting?
Check…
Look forwards to “playoff” Jimmy disappearing for 2 games out of 3 in the playoffs…
Check…
You can learn a lot about an old players future by looking at their past…
I just think you’re falling behind by standing in one spot and looking backwards.
There’s a life to be lived. There’s experiences to enjoy and there’s risks to take and rewards to reap.
I believe in people and I invest in people. You look at their past and come to set conclusions about their future. You’re a pessimist I’m an optimist.
It doesn’t matter what you think…
My opinion is my opinion… It is based off of my perception of the facts…
Jimmy is old and has never been durable like LBJ…
It does matter what I think. You look at it, you assess it, and you accept it or you don’t. But it matters.
When you are wrong and I write to you what I think, then what I think is right and what you think is wrong.
Lately that has been painfully obvious concerning the Warriors and Jimmy Butler and Andrew Wiggins. Your bias towards past actions is clouding your ability to come to reasonable conclusions.
Those are just straight up facts.
Whether you accept it or not is up to you. Stay in your hole or come out and take a look at the sun once in a while.
Did you watch Kyrie Irving last night?
He’s another guy who’s had a horrible reputation for his antics and sitting out and not being durable and all the rest of it.
He was actually was the poster child for talented but troubled.
He is putting the Mavericks on his back right now. You pay these guys and they perform. You neglect contract extensions and they will tear your team apart. Facts.
But according to your way of thinking, because of Kyrie‘s history in both Boston and Brooklyn, you write him off and don’t even consider him as a trade target or free agent signing.
You’re done with him because of what he’s done.
That’s a mistake and you’re wrong. That’s my opinion and it matters because I’m right.
Gary, and don’t forget the “Playoff” part of playoff Jimmy.
“The Magic have gone 5-14 over their past 10 games”. That’s impossibly bad.
In a mid-season trade, it takes time for a team to adjust to the new player and the player to adjust to the new team. Heat will likely lose the next two. But they will then go into the All-star break, giving them some time to integrate the new players. By March we’ll have a better idea of the team they’ll be.