James L. Edwards III of The Athletic tweeted that Franz Wagner appeared to suffer a significant injury in the first quarter of Sunday’s game in New York.
The Magic later announced that Wagner has a lower left leg injury and will miss the rest of the contest, adding that he will be reevaluated once the team returns to Orlando.
The injury happened during a fast break after Wagner poked the ball away from Jalen Brunson. He raced ahead and positioned himself near the basket as Anthony Black lofted an alley-oop pass.
Knicks big man Ariel Hukporti swatted the attempt and fouled Wagner, leading to an awkward fall in which Wagner immediately grabbed his left knee.
Hukporti, also from Germany, showed concern and checked on Wagner. After several minutes on the floor, Wagner was helped off by Moritz Wagner and Noah Penda and couldn’t put weight on his left leg.
The setback comes at a difficult time for Orlando, which just got Paolo Banchero back from injury. Wagner had been excellent to start the year, averaging 23.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.2 steals on .487/.354/.823 shooting across 23 games.
He’d been wearing a face mask after breaking his nose in November and was recently nominated for Eastern Conference Player of the Month for October/November.
ICYMI: Franz Wagner left Sunday's game against the Knicks early with a left leg injury. Story: https://t.co/yVI5UNF8nj
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) December 8, 2025
