The Orlando Magic beat the New York Knicks 124-107 on Wednesday, November 12 at Madison Square Garden, earning their second consecutive win. However, the team got some concerning injury news after the contest.
Paolo Banchero left the game in the second quarter with an apparent groin injury, and he told Fred Katz of The Athletic that he will undergo an MRI on Thursday, November 12. The Magic have not yet provided a recovery timeline for Banchero’s injury and will have a better idea of one later this week.
The third-year forward has a history of injuries in his NBA career, as he missed significant time last season with an oblique tear and sustained an ankle sprain during his rookie year.
Losing Banchero would be a tough break for Orlando, who have won five of their last seven games after starting the year 1-4. The All-Star entered Wednesday’s game as the team’s leading scorer. The Magic have postseason aspirations again in 2025-26 after trading for Desmond Bane in the offseason, a deal that included four first-round picks and a first-round pick swap.
Paolo Banchero Gives Injury Update
Banchero provided more details on the groin injury he sustained during the second quarter of Wednesday night’s game. He said he jumped for a rebound, landed and then felt a pull in his groin area.
“I just slowed up, and I felt it right away,” Banchero said. “And then, I did a couple more trips up and down, and then, it was still there. So I asked to come out because I didn’t want to risk further injury.”
Banchero said he will receive an MRI on the injury on Thursday and is hoping the recovery will be short. He explained this injury felt different in the moment as compared to the oblique tear he sustained last year in a game against the Chicago Bulls, which cost him 34 games.
“I dealt with an oblique last year, and that was a tear,” Banchero said. “And feeling it, it was kinda really painful to where I couldn’t really do much. I couldn’t really move much. This [groin injury], I can still do movements. There just was a pain there. [Trainers] said if it was torn or anything, I wouldn’t be able to do anything. So, that’s encouraging. We’ll see how I feel tomorrow. I’ll get the MRI and start treatment from there, but hopefully, [the timeline is] not very long.”
Losing Paolo Banchero Would Be Tough For Orlando Magic
Banchero is a key piece of Orlando’s rotation, and losing him for any amount of time would be a difficult blow. The former No. 1 overall pick was leading the team in scoring before Wednesday, averaging 23.3 points, 9.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists.
The Magic are one of the hottest teams in the NBA, led by a core of Banchero, Bane and forward Franz Wagner, who is averaging 22.5 points per game. They finish this week with a home game against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, November 14 before a road game against the Houston Rockets on Sunday, November 16.
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