The Orlando Magic have decided to sit their new draft pick Jonathan Isaac for the last two games of the summer league due to a strained left hip.
Isaac, the 6th pick in this year’s NBA draft, shows flashes of his skills but also some need for improvement. After an uneven showing in his pro debut Saturday, the rail-thin forward played well Sunday and Monday. In 18.6 minutes per game over those three games, he averaged 10.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks.
Isaac suffered the injury late in the first half of Monday afternoon’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks.
An MRI was performed after the defeat, and the exam revealed no structural damage other than a strain, team officials said.
“On something like this, you always err on the side of caution,” Magic general manager John Hammond said. “We had a chance to see him play. I thought he played extremely well when he had the opportunity given to him. I don’t want to say we’ve seen enough, but we saw what we were hoping to see.”
Isaac displayed the versatility, agile feet and quick reactions that prompted the Magic to draft him sixth overall on June 22.
Magic Waive Zimmerman
The Orlando Magic waived center Stephen Zimmerman on Tuesday, ending his tenure with the team after one year.
The Magic selected Zimmerman 41st overall in the 2016 NBA Draft, and he always was considered a long-term project.
He played sparingly for the Magic as a rookie, appearing in just 19 games. And when he did play meaningful minutes, he often struggled.
Zimmerman started just one of Orlando’s first three games in the Orlando Pro Summer League this year, and he didn’t make much of an impact.
