9/22/2023 0 Comments Orlando magic franz wagnerIt is the level that he is doing everything at such a young age. The broadcasters treated Wagner like he is one of the team’s stars. It is not a surprise that he is making an impact. Wagner is still pretty unassuming and not looking for the spotlight. That feeling speaks to how quickly Wagner has developed.Ī German basketball magazine proclaimed him the “Face of the Next Generation” and the media at EuroBasket named him the best young player in a survey. And the German captain took over the game’s final stages. This is still ostensibly Dennis Schroder’s team. He is still just 21 years old and has a lot of things to improve on - including tightening his dribble under pressure if the Magic or anyone has any vision of using him as a point forward. That should not take anything away from Wagner’s game. Everyone was just missing shots short, including a game-winning attempt at the buzzer where Wagner stepped back to the three-point line and missed his shot short. Some of Germany’s best possessions in a tired overtime period came when Wagner got downhill and was able to dish the ball out to shooters. Germany needed some baskets and relied too much on isolations from Dennis Schroder that killed the team’s offensive flow. Especially late as Lithuania made a late run, pounding the inside with Jonas Valanciunas (34 points and 14 rebounds). Yet, despite all that, it still seemed like Wagner was not involved enough. Wagner cemented a strong showing early on in EuroBasket in his national team debut with 32 points on 12-for-20 shooting, including a run of 14 straight points in the third quarter, a pair of late pull-up 3-pointers and a whole lot more highlights on both ends. And on basketball’s biggest stage this summer, Wagner is not just showing out, he is downright starring. Wagner has clearly stepped his game up in several ways, even if it is just added confidence in everything he already does so well. But after an offseason to get some work in, Wagner is already showing he can do a whole lot more.Īfter the performance he put in during a huge 109-107 double-overtime win over Lithuania in EuroBasket on Sunday, it is getting harder to deny what Wagner could give the Magic both in the 2023 season and well beyond. It would be impossible to ask him to be fully formed. He was just a 20-year-old rookie last year. His EuroBasket run is ensuring everyone knows the Orlando Magic forward and that a whole lot more is coming. So what would happen if a team let Wagner cook? What would happen if Wagner gained more confidence to attack off the dribble and understood just how good he could be? Franz Wagner had a stellar rookie season that deserved more notice in a good rookie class. A player that left every Magic fan asking and wanting more in so many ways. He was perhaps the team’s best player last year and a player who quickly came to define the potential of this young team. But they always believed how much he would help. The Orlando Magic made him the eighth pick in the draft only to watch him struggle through Summer League. The guy who got the dreaded “jack-of-all-trades” label and the one who did not have the eye-popping stats but who still just made everything work. In a star-studded 2021 Draft class, Wagner was the unassuming one. Franz Wagner has always felt like a best-kept secret.
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