Carter (finger) is out for Friday's game against the Celtics.
Not much of a surprise here, as Carter is getting closer to the three-week timeline to be reevaluated after suffering a fractured third metacarpal on his left hand earlier this month. His next chance to feature will come against the Hornets on Sunday, but his chances of actually featuring in that matchup are slim.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Not ready to return
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Carter (finger) is listed as out for Tuesday's game against the Raptors.
Carter is approximately three weeks removed from undergoing surgery to address a fractured third metacarpal on his left hand. The Magic were set to re-evaluate the center after three weeks, and while he could be cleared to resume basketball activities in the coming days, Carter looks like he may require some ramp-up time before he's deemed ready for game action. Expect Carter to miss both ends of the Magic's back-to-back set to begin the week, with Orlando returning to action Wednesday against the Nuggets following Tuesday's contest.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Will be re-evaluated in three weeks
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Carter (hand) will undergo surgery to repair a fractured third metacarpal in his left hand and will be re-evaluated in three weeks, the Magic announced Saturday.
The fact that the injury occurred in Carter's non-shooting hand will allow him to have a quicker recovery, but his long-term status remains to be determined. Moritz Wagner has been serving as Carter's direct backup and is the top candidate to replace him in the starting lineup, with Goga Bitadze likely to experience an uptick in minutes as well.
The Magic announced after Thursday's 115-113 win over the Jazz that Carter fractured his left middle finger during the contest, Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel reports. A course of treatment will be determined once the team returns to Orlando on Friday.
Carter posted his first double-double of the season Thursday, racking up 14 points (5-12 FG, 3-6 3Pt, 1-2 FT), 10 rebounds, two assists and one block over 29 minutes but apparently injuring the finger at some point along the way. Since the injury is to Carter's non-dominant hand, he could have a quicker timeline for a return than if he had injured his shooting hand, but the veteran center appears likely to miss multiple weeks in any case. Moritz Wagner has been serving as Carter's direct backup and is the top candidate to replace him in the starting lineup beginning with Saturday's game against the Lakers, and Wagner makes for an attractive pickup in most 12-team category and points leagues due to the fantasy-friendly skill set he's displayed in the past when given meaningful minutes. Assuming Wagner starts, Goga Bitadze could be in line to serve as his top backup, with Jonathan Isaac and Chuma Okeke also on hand as potential options at center when the Magic run small-ball lineups.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Falls just short of double-double
Rotowire
Carter racked up eight points (2-7 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 3-4 FT), nine rebounds and one assist across 26 minutes during Friday's 102-97 victory over the Trail Blazers.
Carter has failed to score in double figures in back-to-back games to start the season. The veteran center should have more efficient shooting performances moving forward, as he has shot over 50 percent from the field in four straight seasons but is currently shooting just 35.3 percent from the field. While Carter's offensive production should increase, his lack of defensive stats has always been concerning. He hasn't averaged more than 1.5 steals-plus-blocks for a full season since 2019-20, when he was with the Bulls.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Paces team in preseason opener
Rotowire
Carter recorded 18 points (5-10 FG, 4-5 3Pt, 4-6 FT), five rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block in 19 minutes during Tuesday's 122-105 preseason win over the Pelicans.
Carter was lights out from deep during Orlando's preseason opener. The big man shot a career-high 35.6 percent from deep on 3.9 attempts per game last year, and while his increased range is a nice plus in fantasy, there are still some concerns with Carter's profile. He's struggled to stay healthy in his career, and his lack of defensive stats continues to be an issue. With that said, Carter is a walking double-double when healthy, so he can certainly be a nice add late in drafts.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Gets limited run in return
Rotowire
Carter (hip) played 16 minutes in Sunday's 123-110 loss to the Heat, finishing with zero points (0-3 FG, 0-3 3Pt), four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Carter had missed the Magic's previous two games with left hip soreness, but he was able to finish the season on the court, albeit in a limited capacity. The fifth-year center wrapped up the 2022-23 campaign with averages of 15.2 points and 1.4 three-pointers -- both career highs -- to go with 8.7 boards, 2.3 assists, 0.6 blocks and 0.5 steals in 29.6 minutes per game over his 57 appearances.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Starting against Miami
Rotowire
Carter (hip) is in the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the Heat, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
Carter was initially listed as out for the season finale but got upgraded to questionable Saturday and now will end up starting. It remains to be seen if he'll handle his usual workload, as the team's lottery odds are still in flux, meaning the flow of the game will probably determine Carter's involvement Sunday.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Upgraded to questionable
Rotowire
Carter (hip) has been upgraded from out to questionable for Sunday's finale against the Heat.
Orlando has now listed all five of its starters as questionable for the regular-season finale. It's possible some scoreboard-watching will take place, as the Magic's lottery odds are still somewhat in flux.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Out for finale
Rotowire
Carter (hip) will not play in Sunday's regular-season finale versus the Heat, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
Carter's absence means his 2022-23 season has ended. He finished the year with averages of 15.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.5 steals, 0.6 blocks and 1.4 triples across 29.9 minutes in 56 games.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Now listed as out
Rotowire
Carter (hip) has been ruled out for Friday's game against the Nets.
After being upgraded from out to questionable earlier Friday, Carter has now been ruled out again and will miss back-to-back contests. His next chance to suit up will come during Orlando's regular-season finale in Miami, but it seems likely the Magic will opt to give players like Bol Bol, Chuma Okeke and Goga Bitadze extended looks over thrusting Carter back into game action with nothing to play for.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Upgraded to questionable
Rotowire
Carter (hip) has been upgraded to questionable for Friday's matchup at Brooklyn.
Thursday night, the Magic ruled out Carter and the rest of the starting lineup for Friday's game but have decided to upgrade them all to questionable as of Friday morning. It's unclear why, given that Orlando ran out a skeleton crew against the Cavaliers on Thursday.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Out Friday
Rotowire
Carter (hip) has been ruled out for Friday's contest against the Nets.
Carter will sit out for a second straight game alongside a majority of Orlando's typical starters, as the team has been eliminated from any postseason play. With Moritz Wagner (ankle) unavailable as well, expect Goga Bitadze and Bol Bol to see extended minutes Friday.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Late scratch Thursday
Rotowire
Carter is out for Thursday's game versus the Cavaliers due to left hip soreness.
With the Magic eliminated from making even the Play-In, many of their starters have been ruled out Thursday. Moritz Wagner, Goga Bitadze and Bol Bol are all candidates to see extended minutes in Carter's absence. The 23-year-old big man's next chance to suit up is Friday's matchup with Brooklyn.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Turns away two shots in loss
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Carter finished Tuesday's 113-108 loss to the Grizzlies with 14 points (5-10 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 2-2 FT), seven rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one steal in 29 minutes.
Carter has fallen short of a double-double in four straight games, but he's still chugging along nicely during that stretch with average or above-average contributions in six categories (15.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.8 three-pointers and 0.8 blocks per game, 55.8 percent shooting from the field, 84.6 percent from the free-throw line). The Magic are 4.5 games behind the Bulls for the final spot in the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament, but head coach Jamahl Mosley has thus far shown no inclination to shut down Carter or any of the team's other top contributors.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Top rebounder in near double-double
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Carter logged 16 points (7-13 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 0-1 FT) and eight rebounds over 31 minutes during Thursday's 111-106 win over the Knicks.
Carter led the Magic in rebounds while finishing as one of six players in double figures in scoring and ending two boards short of notching a double-double. Carter has posted at least 15 points with five or more rebounds on 29 occasions this year, including in six of his last seven outings.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Dominates in upset victory
Rotowire
Carter amassed 27 points (11-19 FG, 4-8 3Pt, 1-1 FT), 12 rebounds, two assists, two blocks and three steals across 33 minutes during Saturday's 113-108 win over the Clippers.
Carter was on a mission Saturday, rocking a healthy double-double while adding season-high totals in both blocks and steals. Despite sitting outside the top 100 thus far this season, he has been putting up first-round value over the past two weeks. The Magic don't feel as though they are going to ease up down the stretch, meaning Carter should be locked into heavy minutes, barring any injuries.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Explosive outing in return
Rotowire
Carter (hip) notched 27 points (12-17 FG, 2-7 3Pt, 1-2 FT), 11 rebounds, two assists and one steal in 42 minutes during Saturday's 126-114 overtime victory over Miami.
After missing the Magic's previous three games with a hip injury, Carter looked to be fully healthy Saturday while logging a massive workload as the team's starting center. Miami had no answer for Carter inside, where he was a perfect 9-of-9 around the rim. Assuming Carter experiences no setbacks with his hip coming out of Saturday's game, he should be ready to go when the Magic kick off a four-game week Tuesday in San Antonio. The final two games of the week are part of a Saturday/Sunday back-to-back set versus the two Los Angeles teams, however, so Carter could be a candidate to sit out one of those contests.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Will be back in action Saturday
Rotowire
Carter (hip) is not on the injury report ahead of Saturday's game against the Heat.
The Magic's starting center will return following a three-game absence, so Moritz Wagner will presumably head back to the bench. Over Carter's past 10 appearances, he's averaged 15.0 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 28.0 minutes.
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Magic's Wendell Carter: Sidelined again Thursday
Rotowire
Carter (hip) remains out for Thursday's contest versus the Jazz.
Carter will skip a third consecutive tilt with soreness in his left hip, and the Magic don't have much reason to rush him back to action. Moritz Wagner should receive another start at center in his absence, with Goga Bitadze also potentially factoring in. Carter's next opportunity to return surfaces Saturday versus the Heat.
