Franz Wagner’s return to the floor helped the Orlando Magic close their home finale with a 132-120 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night at the Kia Center. After the game, Wagner said the second half showed the kind of focus Orlando wants heading into the postseason.
“Yeah, sucks. I was actually not I didn’t see that part of the game, but I thought the second half was a lot better in terms of our intensity and focus and just sticking to, you know, what we want to do,” Wagner said. “And I think usually that tends to work out really well for us and know just sticking with the process.”
Wagner, who briefly left after what he described as a hyperextension, said the early return to the game mattered. “You know hyper extended the leg a little bit so you know not the best feeling in the world and pretty quickly it all felt felt normal and checked everything,” he said. “I think it’s important to be out there and you know get some confidence then and play a couple minutes more.”
Orlando finished with 32 assists, and Wagner said the ball movement has been improving at exactly the right time. “I think the last couple games we’ve been moving the ball a little bit better,” he said. “Know getting in the paint and making better decisions there and um I think it’s just about, you know, reading the defenses.”
The Magic improved to 44-36 and moved into seventh place in the Eastern Conference. Wagner said the crowd’s reaction to his return meant a lot, especially with the regular season home schedule now complete.
“For sure. No, it means a lot,” he said. “Obviously it hasn’t been the easiest season, I think, for everybody involved. And, you know, I think it’s important to have people that have your back in in those times.”
He added that Orlando still believes it can make a deep run. “I think we got a, you know, really good chance here to make a playoff run,” Wagner said. “You know, that’s really all that matters.”
Wagner also pushed back on the idea that the spacing issues were only about returning players. “I would actually say it has nothing to do with those players,” he said. “I think our bigs have been really good about spacing the floor and know creating creating driving lanes for know our creators.”
The Magic forward said the team’s biggest challenge now is consistency. “I just think we’ve got great confidence in the roster that we have and and the talent level,” Wagner said. “At the same time though, I think it’s time to put it together.”
Orlando now heads to Chicago on Friday before finishing the regular season at Boston on Sunday. The Magic have won four straight, and Wagner’s message was clear: “the good teams, the most consistent teams are the ones that can focus on the moment.”
