In Magic’s Victory Over The Celtics At Home, Jonathan Isaac made a much-anticipated comeback

The Orlando Magic signed Jonathan Isaac back to the NBA after a delay of more than two and a half years. Isaac was playing in his first NBA game since August 2, 2020, when he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during an NBA game “bubble” at Disney World and won 113-98 against the Boston Celtics at Amway Center.

Before the game, coach Jamahl Mosley commented: “We’re all excited for him.” “You’re talking about how many days he’s been out—years. His ability to bounce back and stay on track throughout the process with his faith, work ethic and the support system he has behind him has been tremendous.

After the team’s pregame walkthrough on Sunday at 4pm, Isaac was upgraded from questionable to available. The time between his last NBA game and his return was 904 days. He had not played since tearing his ACL and missed half of this season as well as the 2020–21 and 2021–22 seasons.

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Isaac had a playing time limit of 8–10 minutes, according to Mosley. He made the most of his time and had a favorable influence, especially in the second half. After two five-minute halves, Isaac finished with 10 points (4-of-7 shooting, 2-of-3 on 3-pointers), 3 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 assist in 10 minutes.

A standing ovation greeted his official comeback as he replaced Franz Wagner with seven minutes remaining in the first quarter. In his first possession on the floor, he missed a layup as he quickly tried to establish his offensive rhythm. The Magic took an early 15-8 lead after Isaac’s 12-foot turnaround jumper over Jaylen Brown on the next possession for his first points.

In his brief first quarter appearance of 4:25, he recorded 4 points and 3 rebounds. During his second stint on the field in the third, Isaac seemed particularly at ease. After intercepting a pass from Brown with a quick spin from the weak side, he made a pull-up three to put the Magic ahead 71-68.

With 2:04 left in the quarter, Isaac picked up Brown’s pocket for a steal and assisted Paolo Banchero on a pass shot that put the Magic ahead 86–73. Isaac then replaced himself.

“Over there [are] no words to describe how great he is defensively,” Mosley said. “He just sees the game differently. His activity, height, knowledge and anticipation of things happening defensively. What I didn’t know when I came in was how much work he’s done offensively to look different than the traditional basketball style – the way he handles basketball, shooting, he’s done a great job improving all of that.”

After that, the Magic (18-29) maintained control of the game and defeated the Eastern Conference champions to earn their third win of the year. In mid-December, Orlando won the Celtics (35-13) in Boston. With 23 points on 7 of 13 shots and 5 rebounds, Banchero was the Magic’s leading scorer.

The Magic got a boost in the first half from Cole Anthony, who finished with 18 points (8-of-12 shooting), 5 rebounds and 4 assists in 23 minutes off the bench. Wendell Carter Jr.’s double-double was 21 points and 11 rebounds. Wagner scored a total of 15 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and dished out 6 assists, including 7 in the fourth.

A total of 52 points were scored by Jayson Tatum (26 points) and Brown (26 points). Marcus Smart (strain right ankle), Robert Williams III and Malcolm Brogdon were absent from the Celtics for personal reasons (management of left knee injury). Before the game, Isaac shirts were worn by Magic players, coaches and basketball staff. .

Mosley stated, “I love it” Isaac’s first game at Amway Center since December 30, 2019 and his first game out of competition “bubble” since January 1, 2020, both were on Mondays. Mosley recommended Isaac “Embrace It” in his message.

“For what he’s been through, the ups and downs, the ins and outs, his ability to stay resilient and faithful and keep working, you can only embrace these moments. When he gets used to being back on the field, just play the game he can play. Having fun and enjoying with his teammates. That’s what it was all about.”

Before getting injured, the Magic’s No. 6 in the 2017 draft, Isaac, was having a breakaway season. In 34 games for the 2019–20 season, he averaged 11.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.6 steals. Before Monday, Isaac was back on the floor.

He appeared in three games with the Lakeland Magic, the organization’s G League franchise, in the past two weeks, averaging 15.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 assists in 17.7 minutes.

“The great thing about working in the G League is that he has been able to feel the levels of emotions and situations that he will be in,” said Mosley. “Now that he’s coming back here to us, he’s already felt that a little bit. Now it will probably be on another level. Just communicate with him and understand how to settle down. Just embrace it all. He must. After being away for so long, you don’t want to shy away from that.”

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