Orlando Magic big man Jonathan Isaac is set to play in Monday night's scrimmage against the Denver Nuggets, according to The Athletic's Josh Robbins. While it's unclear if Isaac will play in the Magic's first official restart game against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, this is a big step forward for the 22-year-old.
Isaac hasn't played since New Year's Day due to a severely sprained left knee. While he was initially set to miss the rest of the 2019-20 season, the long hiatus has given the youngster a chance to recover and return to the court to finish out the year.
Isaac is sure to be limited in his return to the court, and the Magic will be extremely cautious with their prized youngster:
“Jonathan has been working extremely hard with our performance staff for a long time, and he has been in overdrive since we got back into our practice facility in mid-May,” Magic President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman told The Athletic.
“But it’s been a very long time since he’s played. As always, we will take a very cautious approach, and his playing time will be placed under a very limited minute restriction as he gets reacclimated to the NBA game.”
Prior to his injury, Isaac was emerging as one of the premier defenders in the NBA in his third season. He averaged 2.4 blocks and 1.6 steals in 32 games before his knee injury. He also averaged 12.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 29.7 minutes per game.
The Magic enter the restart with a 30-35 record. While not impressive, it's still good enough for the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference. They're a half-game back of the No. 7 Nets and 5.5 games ahead of the Washington Wizards.
If Orlando stays in the No. 8 spot, the Wizards will have to get within four games to force a play-in round. Getting Isaac back should help the Magic secure a playoff spot.
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