Magic’s Cole Anthony Sustains Oblique Muscle Injury

Orlando Magic young guard Cole Anthony has suffered an oblique muscle injury.

According to a report from Shams Charania of The Athletic, Orlando Magic rising star guard Cole Anthony is out indefinitely due to an oblique muscle injury. Charania mentioned that there’s no timetable for Anthony’s return, as that will depend on how his recovery will progress.

With this recent news, the injury woes are already piling up for the Magic. Cole Anthony joins the team’s injury report, a quickly-growing list that includes Markelle Fultz (toe), Gary Harris (knee), Jalen Suggs (ankle), Jonathan Isaac (knee), and Moritz Wagner (ankle). With Anthony, Fultz, Harris, and Suggs out, the Magic will have to rely on the likes of R.J. Hampton, Terrence Ross, and Kevon Harris to hold the fort in the backcourt.

Without several key players to start the season, the Magic has lost their first five games. They are one of the three remaining teams still without a win, with the Los Angeles Lakers (0-4) and Sacramento Kings (0-3) being the other two. The Magic are ranked 28th in offensive rating, 21st in defensive rating, and 24th in field goal percentage. As they’re missing their top guards, the team is only averaging 18.2 assists, currently the lowest output among the 30 teams in the NBA.

Cole Anthony, the 15th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, has logged four games this season, tallying a stat line of 15.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.8 blocks per contest. This is his third year with the Magic, and there’s no question that he’s already one of the cornerstones of the franchise. Anthony is part of a very young but talented team, a group that includes other young guns such as Suggs, Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Wendell Carter Jr., Bol Bol, and Chuma Okeke.