Magic's Paolo Banchero sidelined indefinitely due to oblique tear: How is Orlando adjusting to this?

All-Star forward Paolo Banchero, one of the NBA's rising stars, has torn his right oblique muscle and will be out for an extended period of time, the Orlando Magic announced Thursday night.

Team officials said Banchero will be reevaluated in four to six weeks. He suffered the oblique injury in the fourth quarter of the Magic's loss Wednesday night in Chicago, and tests conducted Thursday in Cleveland showed the extent of the injury.

Banchero's injury comes after he scored 50 points in the Magic's win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday.

His injury is a potentially major blow to the up-and-coming Magic, who reached the first round of the playoffs last spring and would make another leap this season with Banchero, their leading scorer, in the starring role. Banchero's absence could prevent Orlando from securing a top-six spot.

Last season, in which Banchero played in 80 regular-season games, the Magic finished with the No. 5 seed in the East.

Banchero, the No. 1 pick in 2022, is the key piece in a highly regarded young core that includes forward Franz Wagner, defenseman Jalen Suggs and a deep bench. With Banchero out, the Magic will have to rely on scoring from Wagner, Suggs and the rest of their deep roster, as well as a defense that ranked third in the league in points allowed per possession last season.

Durability was one of Banchero's strengths. In his first two seasons, he played in 152 of Orlando's 164 regular season games.

How will Banchero's absence hurt the most?

It's hard to overstate how much Orlando relies on Banchero for its offense. For a 6-foot-2 power forward, Banchero is responsible for an inordinate amount of shots – not just for himself, but for others as well.

He poses such a threat wherever he has the ball that opponents often pounce on him, leaving one or more teammates open. As important as Banchero's 29 points per game are for Orlando, so is the fact that Banchero has assisted on nearly 28 percent of his teammates' shots this season, according to advanced analytics database Cleaning the Glass. That's a sky-high assist rate for an NBA great, and it speaks to the magnetism that Banchero generates, but also his unselfishness, his passing ability and his vision on the court.

Despite all that Banchero has to offer, the Magic struggled to score in the halfcourt last season. Through Wednesday, Orlando ranked a much-improved 15th in the league in points scored per possession. This improvement is now being tested.

Wagner already plays a significant playing role, and that role will certainly increase now. Suggs, nominally billed as a point guard, needs to make a jump as a shotmaker in his own right.

Is there a silver lining?

Uh, mostly no. Banchero is The well, and what makes this injury seem even more like a punch in the gut for the Magic is the fact that he seemed poised to improve on his All-Star season a year ago.

But the Magic are, first and foremost, a defense-oriented team. While Banchero is an underrated defender, his absence shouldn't hurt the Magic much on defense (unless the Magic miss more shots, thereby giving opponents more opportunities to move the ball upfield).

Coach Jamahl Mosley still has a variety of defensive players, including Suggs, Wagner, winger Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, forward Jonathan Isaac, big man Wendell Carter Jr. and backup Anthony Black.

The Magic will need to rely on their defense even more than they have in the past, and perhaps place more emphasis on pushing the ball upfield (and getting shots up before opponents set up their defense) than they did when Banchero was healthy .

Mosley has plenty of options for his starting lineup. Maybe he'll use Isaac as the starting forward. Maybe Mosley brings sharpshooter Caleb Houstan into the starting lineup to make room. Mosley could also shift Carter to the four and start Goga Bitadze at center.

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(Photo: Jim Rassol / Imagn Images)