Just when it seemed like the Orlando Magic were trending in the right direction, an ACL tear to young stud Jonathan Isaac has muddied their future.
The Orlando Magic can’t have nice things. At this point, that just seems to be a fact. Going right back to Shaquille O’Neal’s decision to leave all those years ago, followed by injuries robbing the franchise of some prime Penny Hardaway, Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill years, it has never been straightforward for the Magic.
Dwight Howard’s decision to leave in 2012 was another low point, one which took more than half a decade to begin to recover from. That process began to turn last season, when the Magic made it back to the playoffs and looked to have some young players they could finally build around.
Then last night happened. In a bubble, in Florida, with no fans in attendance, potential franchise savior Jonathan Isaac went down with what looked immediately like a bad knee injury. Given that we have seen this before, on New Year’s Day no less, there was hope that perhaps this might just be another sprain.
Then you remember this is the Magic we’re talking about. Lucky escapes like that barely ever happen once for them, never mind twice. The news broke not long after the game. ACL tear. Isaac going to be lost for somewhere between six to nine months depending on how his rehab goes. Perhaps it will be longer. Knowing the Magic’s luck, it probably will be.