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Magic Rule Out 4 Players Before Season Opener Against Hawks
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- Magic Rule Out 4 Players Before Season Opener Against Hawks
The Orlando Magic will play its season opener Wednesday night without Anthony Black, Jonathan Isaac, Izaiyah Nelson, or Noah Penda. The league's injury report has all four out for the 7 p.m. ET tip-off against the Atlanta Hawks at Kia Center.
Penda's right hamstring gave out in the first quarter Friday against the Miami Heat. He went to the locker room and did not return to Orlando's 136-115 preseason win.
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By Saturday, Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel had reported a partially torn right hamstring. Penda is expected to miss significant time, Beede reported, and Penda described the injury as feeling "like a big cramp in the whole back of my leg."
He tweaked the same hamstring at the start of camp and did not practice fully until Oct. 4. Penda sat out the Oct. 7 exhibition opener at Memphis and played the next three games. According to Beede, Friday's tear was in a different spot than the camp strain, which had healed.
Boston drafted Penda 32nd overall in 2025 and traded him to Orlando, where he appeared in 59 games as a rookie. He averaged 3.8 points and 3.2 rebounds in 12.8 minutes.
Anthony Black Still Working Back From Ankle Injury
Black's right ankle sprain dates to voluntary workouts before camp. Magic coach Sean Sweeney called it minor on Sept. 30 and said Black was day-to-day. Black then sat out all four preseason games.
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After Sunday's practice, Sweeney said Black moved well and would keep ramping up.
No rookie-scale extension came before Monday's 6 p.m. ET deadline, so the sixth overall pick in 2023 is headed for restricted free agency next summer. Black, out of Arkansas, averaged 4.6 points as a rookie. Last season, he averaged 15.0.
Jeff Weltman, the Magic's president of basketball operations, said at media day Sept. 28 that Orlando would keep talking with Black's representatives up until the deadline.
"But if not, we expect Anthony to have a great year," Weltman said. "[Extensions] don't always get done right now. Sometimes they get done later, so we'll see."
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Jonathan Isaac Remains Limited by Left Knee
At media day, Isaac said his left knee would limit him when camp opened. He did not play in any of Orlando's four exhibitions.
He was away from the team for personal reasons for the Oct. 7 game at Memphis and the Oct. 11 game against Cleveland. On Oct. 13, Isaac returned to individual drills, but the knee kept him out that night against the Cavaliers and again Friday against Miami.
Orlando drafted Isaac sixth overall in 2017. The Magic waived him on June 27, before his contract became guaranteed. Four days later, Beede reported he would come back on a one-year deal.
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Izaiyah Nelson Continues Rehab From Ankle Fracture
Nelson has been out since July 12. In his third Las Vegas Summer League game, against the Portland Trail Blazers, he blocked a shot, came down on a teammate, and fractured his left ankle.
Washington drafted the 6-foot-10 forward 51st overall in June out of South Florida. He came to Orlando in a three-team trade that also included the Milwaukee Bucks, and he signed a two-way contract.
Orlando announced the fracture the next morning and said surgery would keep Nelson from basketball activities for three to four months.
"Izaiyah, obviously, suffered a tough injury in summer league," Weltman explained. "He is a world-class worker. He has not done anything live yet. I would say he's still probably a month or so away from that, and then we'll start the clock ticking on a timeline at that point. He is still working on his basic stuff before he gets back to live action."
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The rehab has gone well, by Nelson's account.
"I broke my foot my junior year, so when the injury came, I really wasn't fazed by it," Nelson said.
Franz Wagner, Jase Richardson Avoid Injury Report
Franz Wagner left Friday's game against Miami early with a shoulder injury and is not on the report. Jase Richardson, who also exited early, is not listed.
Wagner got in some light work Sunday.
"He's still being evaluated, but he got some light work," Sweeney said. "We'll just keep working on what's next."
Atlanta has Mouhamed Gueye (left foot fracture) and Henri Veesaar ( torn right ACL ) out. Jalen Wilson, RayJ Dennis, and Keshon Gilbert, all on two-way contracts, are questionable.
The Hawks won all four meetings with Orlando last season, the last of them April 1 at Kia Center. They finished 4-1 in the preseason , closing with a 135-111 win at Dallas on Friday.
