In the bright lights of Las Vegas, with a spot in the NBA Cup final on the line, Jalen Suggs ignited like a man possessed— pouring in an astonishing 25 points in the first half alone, trading blows with Jalen Brunson in a duel that had T-Mobile Arena buzzing. The shorthanded Orlando Magic, already missing Franz Wagner to injury and easing Paolo Banchero back into rhythm, desperately needed that fire to stay afloat against a surging New York Knicks squad. But basketball, cruel as it is, rarely lets heroes script their own endings.

What started as a gritty, warrior-like effort turned heartbreaking in the second half. Suggs, battling through visible pain after a hard landing on his left hip late in the second quarter—and an aggravating collision in the third— tried to gut it out. He briefly returned in the fourth, ice wraps visible around his side, only to be quickly pulled again as the Knicks pulled away in a 132-120 rout.

Limping off for good with just over seven minutes left, replaced by rookie Jase Richardson, Suggs headed straight to the locker room. Later, in a sobering postgame sight, he left the arena in a wheelchair— a precaution, but one that underscored the growing concern for Orlando’s already battered backcourt.

Suggs had been the best perimeter defense on the team, and was an emotional tone-setter for a young locker room. For now, he is expected to go through further tests to determine injury severity.

Suggs is a major part of the Magic‘s success, who lost 26 of 47 games that the guard missed over the last year. The team has to hope that the injury is minor. This season, he’s already struggled with injuries, not playing back-to-backs and missing a game against the Houston Rockets with a groin injury.

With him missing any time, the Magic will likely move reserve guard Anthony Black into the starting lineup, and it’ll open up more minutes for Tyus Jones and Jase Richardson.

Jalen Suggs Speaks Out After Injury Against New York Knicks In NBA Cup Semifinals

After his reported injury, Suggs spoke to reporters following the Magic’s loss to the Knicks and their elimination from the NBA Playoffs, explaining what it means to potentially miss time.

“It’s the part that sucks the most,” Suggs said. “I truly tried [to play]. There’s nowhere else I would have rather been than on the court battling with my guys… But [God] be having other plans, and I can’t be mad at his plans.”

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Suggs has missed at least twenty games in three of his first four seasons, and spent most of October this year ramping back up after a surgery for a knee injury suffered earlier this year that ended his season in January last season.

Both Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane spoke to his impact for the team, with Banchero crediting Suggs’ grit and tough play, along with how the guard is “giving it his all for the team.” He also revealed that Suggs toughed it out through pain in a few of the team’s earlier games.

Bane credited Suggs’ first-half outburst of slashing and transition play for keeping the team afloat in the first half, praising the guard as someone who “laid it all on the line for us.”