The Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2024-25 NBA season looking like clear-cut NBA title contenders. They surrounded Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey with Paul George and what seemed like a mostly competent supporting cast.
Unfortunately, virtually everyone on Philadelphia's roster has either missed time due to injury or underperformed (or both) this season, and the team is 20-38, holding the 12th seed in the Eastern Conference as a result. With how they've played, and with Joel Embiid ruled out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury, it makes all the sense in the world for the 76ers to enter tank mode down the stretch. They're not coming close to winning a championship without their best player, and their first-round pick is top-six protected, incentivizing them to lose.
As it turns out, the 76ers might not be the only Eastern Conference team that entered the year with high hopes only to enter tank mode in the remaining month and a half of the year. The Orlando Magic, who are now without Jalen Suggs for the rest of the season due to a knee injury, might end up following Philadelphia's path.
Tough blow: Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs is out indefinitely due to a trochlea injury in his left knee, sources tell ESPN. During his return to play, Suggs experienced discomfort and had further testing. He's expected to make a full recovery.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 28, 2025
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Jalen Suggs' season-ending injury might cause Magic to enter tank mode
Suggs was in the midst of a career year prior to his injury. In the 35 games he appeared in, the 23-year-old set career highs by averaging 16.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.5 steals, and 0.9 blocks per contest. In addition to being his usual high-end defensive self, Suggs was a major contributor offensively. The Magic do have Cole Anthony and Anthony Black as replacement options, but Suggs is irreplaceable to this Orlando team.
At 29-32, the Magic are the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference as of this writing, and are as close to being the No. 10 seed (the final Play-In spot) as they are to being the No. 6 seed and having a guaranteed ticket to the playoffs. Chances are, without Suggs, their already slim chances of making any sort of noise in the postseason are all but gone.
This is a frustrating outcome for a Magic team that was coming off such a strong 2023-24 campaign. Expectations were high this season, but identical injuries suffered by Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner put them in an early-season hole, and the Magic have not dug themselves out of it even with their star duo now back and healthy. The Magic have gone just 6-10 in their last 16 games, with Banchero and Wagner appearing in all of them.
Given the fact that this team is extremely unlikely to win a playoff round, let alone a championship, it makes all the sense in the world to simply shift gears and focus on the offseason. Orlando having a seven-game lead over the No. 11-seeded Brooklyn Nets makes it unlikely that they miss the Play-In tournament entirely, but as long as they miss the playoffs, they'll end the season with a lottery pick. That is a better prize than a first-round elimination in the playoffs.