It's been a long road to recovery for Orland Magic forward Jonathan Isaac. The last time he appeared in an NBA game was on August 2nd, 2020, versus the Sacramento Kings, when the league played in the Orlando bubble. In that game, Isaac suffered an ACL injury that would cause him to miss the entirety of the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.
Magic fans have waited more than two years to see Isaac return to the court, and according to a recent report, they won't have to wait for all that much longer. On Tuesday, the Magic announced that they assigned Isaac to the Lakeland Magic — Orlando's G-League affiliate — to get some practice reps in with the team. Dan Savage, Director of Digital News with the Magic, wrote the following:
“After starting off this season doing primarily individual drills, Isaac progressed to doing contact action against coaches. His stint in Lakeland will give him the opportunity to take part in team workouts.”
Jonathan Isaac, 25, has played three seasons in the NBA since being drafted in 2017, all with the Magic. During the 2019-20 season (the last time he was healthy enough to play), Isaac averaged 11.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.6 steals, and 2.3 blocks across 32 appearances.
Considering Isaac has missed so much time, it's hard to know what the team will get out of him when he returns or if he will be the same caliber player. But before he got injured, there's no denying that Isaac was a top-tier defensive player, as he was switchable and stuffed the box score with blocks and steals.