Any first-year player in any sport will always spotlight them to perform at the highest level immediately after being drafted. This year top rookies like Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, and Scottie Barnes have made an immediate impact with their teams. Along the way, Franz Wagner has been performing at the highest level like his rookie counterparts and is finally being applauded for his hot start to his NBA career. After setting a career-high and rookie scoring performance this season, let’s see why Wagner has been so successful on the court this season.
Leaving 2021 in Style
Wagner’s first year in the NBA so far has been one to remember. Wagner has been performing at the highest level his rookie season and is taking the league by storm. He’s averaging 15.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game. Wednesday night, Wagner scored a career-high 38 points while shooting an impressive 60 percent from the floor in the loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. While being under the radar compared to his class members such as Mobley, Barnes, and Cunningham, Wagner rises in the charts. In his career high-scoring night, it was a historical showing. The 38 points set the season-high for a rookie this season and joined Shaquille O’Neal and Dennis Scott as the only rookies in Orlando Magic history to reach that mark in a game.
Staying Healthy
The Berlin, Germany native has luckily been on the healthier side of the season, and it shows. He’s logged 35 games for the Magic and has reached over 1,100 minutes before any of the other rookies reached 1,000. Top rookies in his class have been sidelined with injuries and placed in COVID protocols, but not Wagner. The No. 8 overall pick has now scored in double figures in 17 straight games, with seven 20-point outings during that span. Many fans shouldn’t be entirely shocked as he was a key contributor from his time as a Michigan Wolverine. He was a 2019-2020 Big Ten All-Freshman team and a 2020-2021 All-Big Ten second team. Despite the shortened 2020-2021 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wagner averaged 12.5 points per game and shot 47.7 percent from the field.
Needing More Confidence
Head coach of the Magic, Jamahl Mosley, said Wagner does a great job attacking the rim and creating chances. “He goes 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, so (credit to) him getting into the lane, getting fouls, and understanding how he had to get pressure on the rim,” Mosley said. Along with Mosley, teammate Wendell Carter said Wagner needed the confidence to perform well. “Franz is a phenomenal player who knows how to get to his spots. At the beginning of the year, I felt like he struggled with confidence. I told him, ‘They drafted you for a reason,” Carter said. “Go out there and play your game.’ We all huddled around him. We all pushed him.”
Dominant on Both Sides of the Ball
The 6’10” length gives Wagner multiple advantages on both sides of the court. Offensively, he works well without the ball. He does a good job getting open-off screens and making cuts to get easy layups at the basket. As a spot-up shooter, it’s almost practically impossible to context his shot when he’s in the air. He can guard and keep up with anyone on the court on the defensive end. If his opponent ever beats him to the rim, he does a great job contesting the shot and getting the possible rebound to follow.
Wagner is having a stellar first half of the season for the black and blue in Orlando. The rookie out of Michigan has a solid chance to win Rookie of the Year and be the Magic first recipient of the award since Mike Miller in the 2000-2001 season. The key for Wagner is to continue finding his shot, and like his teammate Carter said, keep his confidence up.
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Main Image Credit: From NBA.com
