Paolo Banchero urges patience with Franz Wagner due to ankle injury

The The Orlando Magic are returning from All-Star Weekend facing new adversities.

With a road game against the Sacramento Kings (12-44) set for Thursday night at 10:00 PM ET, Orlando (28-25) will move forward without their star forward Franz Wagner, who has been ruled out indefinitely as he continues to recover from pain related to a high sprain in his left ankle.

Speaking at training on Thursday, Paolo Banchero emphasized patience as Wagner works toward a full recovery.

“I think he’s one of our key parts of our team and you know we need him, but at the same time we don’t want him back before he’s ready, so it’s a shame,” Banchero said.

“You know, he kind of came back two times and was out and then he had to go out again, so we just want him to take his time — however long it takes and get fully healthy because we don’t want him out there if he’s not feeling like himself. So I think that’s the biggest thing is to let him take his time to get healthy.”

Paolo Banchero, Jamahl Mosley highlight the value of Franz Wagner beyond the box score

Wagner, 24, is in his fifth NBA season and remains a central figure in Orlando’s offense. In 28 games, he averaged 21.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 47.9% from the field and 36.5% from 3-point range in 31.8 minutes per game.

Coach Jamal Mosley underscored Wagner’s value beyond the goal, pointing to his work ethic and leadership in the locker room.

“I don’t think there are words that describe what Franz means to this team, his toughness, his resilience, his drive and desire to get back on the field,” Mosley said.

“Every single person on this team knows their work ethic and their care factor for this group. There’s not a lot of words that can describe that for this group, but for him. I talked to him last night and his ability to just want to be on the floor and that’s what’s the hardest part, but also realizing that he knows how capable this group is of accomplishing what we want to do even in this time.”

Magic’s Moritz Wagner opens up about brother Franz’s emotional battle

Wagner’s absence also carries a personal dimension for teammate and brother Moritz Wagner.

“First of all, it’s bullshit because he’s my brother and you have a pretty high-level relationship and he’s obviously not happy with that and he’s struggling emotionally and all that stuff, so everything that comes with that,” Moritz said.

“He hates to see that for a family member. Obviously for us as players, also a big one because he has such a big impact on the game, but primarily I care more about the person and I feel really bad for him.”

Moritz added that the recovery it extends beyond physical rehabilitation.

“I think my biggest piece of advice and what I’ve learned is that it only heals if you’re emotionally free, calm and relaxed,” he said.

“You can’t fight it every day, so the time frame where you’re doing rehab and not a day-to-day structure is a lot calmer for the mind and a lot more effective for healing the body, and I think he’s been embracing that the last couple of days, and we’ll see in three weeks. But to kind of have that time to relax (the mind) and let the work and the body be ready to do it.”

As Orlando enters the final stretch of the regular season, the organization has made it clear that its priority is getting Wagner back to full strength, not rushing him back before he’s ready.